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ALIEN SPECIES  Species that are accidentally or purposefully introduced to a new location  Also known as: Introduced species Non-native species Exotic species  Can also be…..INVASIVE SPECIES

INVASIVE SPECIES  Non-native species that cause harm to the ecosystem in which it has been introduced  Often has no predators in new area so they reproduce faster than native species  How do they cause problems? Take over habitat of native species Invade their bodies Disrupt ecosystem Compete with native species for food and habitat

EXAMPLES OF INVASIVE SPECIES  Asian Carp : voracious feeders can grow to kg consuming large quantities of food, muscling out native fish populations, and altering native habitat August 14, 2009: ○ Reached barrier at Chicago June 22, 2010: ○ Carp caught past barrier in Illinois Part 1 (7:05 min): Part 2 (6:39 min):

EXAMPLES OF INVASIVE SPECIES:  Zebra Mussels : First detected in great lakes in 1988 Arrived in ballast water of ship ○ Ballast water: water picked up by ships to stabilize them while at sea, released at destination Effects: ○ Blocked pipelines ○ Cut people’s feet ○ Filter feeders, contain high amounts of pollutants, passed onto predators

EXAMPLES OF INVASIVE SPECIES:  Purple Loosestrife: Introduced from Europe in 1800s as ornamental plant Invaded wetlands throughout eastern North America, choking out many native species Altered wetland ecosystem for other species

Invasive Species in Cootes Paradise  Carp - Fishway constructed to prevent carp from getting in, but allowing smaller fish - Water level manipulation also used  Purple Loosestrife - beetles released that only feed on purple loosestrife - native predators of loosestrife beetles are ladybeetles, true bugs, predaceous beetles, spiders, and possibly birds, frogs, and lizards More info &spn= , &t=f&z=3&ecpo se= , , ,0,0,0

WHAT CAN YOU DO?  Do not release alien plants or animals (including pets and live bait) into the wild.  Do not bring fruit, vegetables, plants, or animals with you across borders.  Before taking a recreational trip, inspect and clean fishing equipment, boats, trailers, recreational vehicles, and other items that may harbour hitch-hiking invaders.  Do not transport over long distances firewood or other wood with bark attached. Reference: Hinterlands Who’s Who: Issues and Topics: Invasive and Alien Species in Canada,

Consequence Mapping  What is it? - a visual tool for illustrating the many kinds of future effects related to a real or imaginary event, issue or problem - ask a “ What if? ” question and brainstorm all the consequences - Let ’ s try an example: What if we ban cars? - We can categorize our consequences as social, scientific, legal and ethical, economic, personal or environmental.

Home Fun !:  Complete handout a) Read pages 59 & 66 and answer the questions b) Complete the consequence map on invasive species

Cane Toad  1935 introduced in Australia to eat scarab beetles destroying sugar cane fields  only 100 toads imported from Hawaii, soon exploded into  shortly after introduction, found out that toads unable to fly, climb or scale sugar cane to eat the beetles that lived in upper portion of cane  toads became voracious predators to almost everything except the beetle Cane toad videoclip (8:12 min):

Snakehead  Aggressive  can grow to 1.5 meters in length  can survive out of water for days  can also jump into boats, rip their prey in half or sever a human arm with their powerful jaws  Dubbed “Frankenfish” by U.S. media  well adapted to cold water  no natural predators in North America Snakehead videoclip (3:40 min): Snakehead info: More info:

Asian Longhorned Beetle  1996 – arrived accidently in cargo from Asia  Destroys hardwood trees, including maple (50% of trees in GTA are maple)  Potential to destroy 50% of harwood forests in North America  No known natural enemies in Canadian forests Video (2:45 min): More info: