Hi I am a chemist and not an ecologist but I'm very interested in this thread since I enjoy the wetlands area close to Sacramento near the Davis Yolo Causeway. I wondered and am interested in this invasive or progression type question. I saw that there was a species called Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) that was introduced in the 1800s (?) and is a wetland flower that has invaded wetlands. I suppose my question is how far do we go back to determine if a species is invasive. Is there a time or case when an invasive becomes a native? I did see this interesting online article where the question asked was "Can native species become invasive?"
http://ipmsouth.com/2010/11/23/can-native-species-become-invasive/ Thanks. Ling Ling Huang Sacramento City College --- On Sun, 4/22/12, Amanda Newsom <ajnew...@ucdavis.edu> wrote: From: Amanda Newsom <ajnew...@ucdavis.edu> Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] Invasion, or progression? To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU Date: Sunday, April 22, 2012, 3:40 PM Very intelligent members of the public have asked me this question when they approach me in the field and I have some time to chat. It's a great question, because invasions biology is attacked politically on this front, so it's one to which professionals really must craft a coherent response in friendly conversation. Another point to consider is the evolutionary history of native vs. introduced (non-native) species in any particular system. One of the reasons non-natives are of concern is that they do not share evolutionary history with the native community, and this contributes to the unpredictable biodiversity loss cited by other comments presented here. This can also be discussed in light of the homogenization of life on earth, because there are many species favored, facilitated, or directly cultivated by humans that are now distributed worldwide. Some of these species threaten regional biodiversity (Check out the book Ecological Imperialism for a really interesting perspective on colonialism as an ecological process via introduction of new dominant species). There's a lot coming out now on evolution and invasive species as well that is, at least in part, reasonably accessible to a general audience or the academic in ecology/evolution who is wanting to step into invasion biology. Related to this (somewhat tangentially) is that the buildup of introduced and invasive species in systems like San Francisco Bay has also increased the number and complexity of biological interactions, both introduced-introduced and introduced-native. Increasing professional interest in introduced-introduced interactions hasn't yet yielded a whole lot of generalized hypotheses, but it has opened new windows to how complex this issue is biologically and how best to protect species of interest as well as local biodiversity. That was a far longer and more convoluted comment than I originally intended! Hopefully, Joshua, some of that is useful perspective. Thanks for posing the question to ECOLOG! It can be intimidating to put something like this out there as an undergrad, and I'm glad you took the initiative. It comes up a lot, as you can see, and ECOLOG is a great forum for this discussion. A. On Sun, Apr 22, 2012 at 9:19 AM, Ruhl, Nathan <nr343...@ohio.edu> wrote: > I posed a very similar question to a group of graduate students and > professors during a theoretical ecology seminar a few years ago. The > central premise was that humans, by virtue of our innate-desire/ability to > alter our surroundings, have caused a general decline in biodiversity > globally. That is,humans are the primary vector for a loss of global > biodiversity, not the "non-native"/"invasive" species. The question was, > is reduction of biodiversity bad or is it simply evolution in favor of > species better adapted to live in a human-altered landscape? > > After much debate, the consensus was more or less that we don't know what > all the ecological implications of a rapid global reduction in biodiversity > will be and, because we have only one habitable planet currently, it would > be a good idea not to break it. Therefore, in the absence of a rigorous > ecological understanding that we may never actually achieve, humans should > be taking steps to promote the conservation of biodiversity whenever > possible. > > N Ruhl > Ohio University > ________________________________________ > > On Sun, Apr 22, 2012 at 10:01 AM, Joshua Wilson > <joshua.m.wils...@gmail.com>wrote: > > > Good morning, > > > > I know that invasive and non-native species have been getting a great > deal > > of attention lately, and justly. I understand the basic ecological > impacts > > and concerns invasive species cause, and the disruption of the native > > system. My main question is: > > > > Why are invasive species considered a nuisance, instead of adaptation, > > progression, or perhaps ecosystem evolution? > > > > Yes, human beings have been a main cause of the large majority of these > > invasions. But even so, I feel we are part of the natural system. If an > > invasive species exhibits more plasticity or is more competitive and > > adaptive than the present species in an ecosystem, does that necessarily > > imply catastrophic impacts? There are multiple arguments against this, I > > know, many of them strong and verified. I am not an advocate of invasive > > species dominated ecosystems, but am just curious why this change and > shift > > is considered so extremely detrimental. I feel that stable and > progressive > > change and adaptation is the basis of a strong ecological system. > > > > I would welcome any thoughts on this, or perhaps to start a discussion. > I > > am still an undergrad, so my question may seem farfetched and ridiculous > to > > some. Even so, just something to ponder on a lovely Sunday morning. > > > > Have a good day all, > > > > Josh Wilson > > > > > > -- > Gary D. Grossman, PhD > > Professor of Animal Ecology > Warnell School of Forestry & Natural Resources > University of Georgia > Athens, GA, USA 30602 > > http://grossman.myweb.uga.edu/ <http://www.arches.uga.edu/%7Egrossman> > > Board of Editors - Animal Biodiversity and Conservation > Editorial Board - Freshwater Biology > Editorial Board - Ecology Freshwater Fish > -- Amanda Newsom Graduate Student Bodega Marine Laboratory ``Life shrinks or expands according to one's courage'' -- Anais Nin
