INVASIVE SPECIES IN UNITED STATES

 For centuries, plants and animals were introduced to new environments and new continents for use as food, fuel and building material. For example, the turkey is native to North America. The British brought it to England. Today, the turkey replaces the goose as the traditional Christmas dinner. Gordon Ramsey, world-renown chef has made it even more popular in England. 

Today we also understand that non-native species can create enormous harm. 

"The importation of unwanted species is a threat not just to wildlife but to human health and our economy," says David Lodge, a Cornell University biologist. 

Generally, people don't think of viruses or bacteria as invasive, but they have been. The West Nile virus, first found in Uganda, arrived in the United States in 1999 and is now the nation's most common mosquito-born illness, with 60,000 cases and almost 3,000 deaths. Bird flu currently found in American dairy cattle was imported from China. 

Around the world, invasive species cause $423 billion in damage annually, mostly to agriculture. Another pestilence coming from China is the Formosan termite that has caused more than $1 billion in damages annually to U.S. homes and other structures. 

Altogether, the United States government spends more than $3 billion per year addressing invasive species, mostly through border control and customs. 

MURDER HORNET [or Asian Giant Hornet]: 

In December of 2024, five years after the hornet was spotted in Washington state agriculture officials have stated the species has been wiped out. Murder Hornets are sometimes confused with the Africanized "killer bees", a problem decades ago. Northern giant hornets can grow up to 2 inches long and wipe out a honey bee colony within hours. Their venom is potent, painful and sometimes deadly; in Japan, they kill up to 50 people a year. In the United States, they were wiped out using traps, vacuuming and destroying nests. Although many invasive species are harmful, some are not. When the U.S. Wildlife last summer decided to shoot 450,000 invasive barred owls to preserve the northern spotted owls, animals objected to such a slaughter, even though it was to save others. 

Some experts recommend that instead of eradicating species, humans should eat them. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration marketed the invasive red lionfish and northern snakehead to chefs. 

John Mayer, a research scientist at Savannah River National Laboratory, University of Colorado stated, talking about wild pigs in 35 states: "We're not gonna barbecue our way out of this." 

The public has become more aware of the damage caused by invasive species than a generation ago. Florida has an annual python hunt, offering a $10,000 bounty to the person who kills the most Burmese pythons. 

Some species gather public and media attention like the Asian carp that can jump out of the water and clobber boats, or a giant parachuting Joro spider, or the kudzo that strangles native trees and shrubs in the South. 

In 2024, Starlings caused an estimated $150 million in damage to grain, fruit and berry crops. 

The history of the spread non-native species has been going on since the age of exploration. American crops such as corn, tobacco and tomatoes were introduced to Europe, while sugar, breadfruit trees and coffee were brought to the New World from Africa and Oceania. 

In 1876, British Sir Henry Wickham brought Asian rubber plant seeds from Brazil to London, where he cultivated them in Kew Gardens. They were later planted in the British colonies in India that led an expansion of the latex industry. In the late 19th century, the USDA created an Office of Plant Introduction that was to find useful foreign plants. 

There were dangers from the beginning. Starting in the 15th century, ship rats spread disease to foreign locations, including typhus and plague. A notorious example was European settlers and African slaves introduced smallpox to the American native population. Two-thirds of Omaha and Blackfeet died from it, naming just two tribes. 

Since the early 20th century, Congress has passed a series of laws meant to protect native plants and animals, making it illegal to import "injurious species". In contrast to island nations like Australia and New Zealand, U.S. agencies lack a law or agency directly addressing the problem. Unless plants are on an approved list, Australia and New Zealand bar all plants from being brought into country. 

The first known invasion of Dutch elm disease in the United States was detected in 1930; within two decades, most elms in North America died. 

Trout used to be big business in the Great Lakes until the sea lamprey was introduced via shipping canals. 

A handful of states have banned sales of invasive Bradford pear trees, but it is still easy to purchase Japanese honeysuckle or Norway maple trees that can ruin ecosystems. 

"If you're not cleaning off your fishing gear, you risk spreading zebra mussels, and they're not good to have around," Rachel Mandi, a naturalist with the Missouri Department of Conservation, told about 20 residents during a recent briefing. 

Zebra Mussels are native to Russia and Ukraine and not only damage other aquatic animals and habitats but cause damage at the cost of $1 billion annually to U.S. water infrastructure by clinging to the insides of pipes that open into bodies of water and clogging them. Most people haven't heard of the South African red weevil or red swamp crayfish, and so don't know how to spot them. Even if people are being careful and making efforts not to carry critters on their boots or tires or firewood, Americans continue to purchase imported plants and animals that can spread outside of the homes. One thing that is certain is that the problem of invasive species will continue with no signs of universal problem being solved.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

• Update on the Invasive Zebra Mussel.

• U.S. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
• NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION
• BRITANNICA - Author: John P. Rafferty
• U.S FOREST SERVICE
• USDA
• USGS
• SCIENCE NOTES AND PROJECTS