Tag Archives: invasive species

Climate Change & Anthropocene Extinction 40: Warming changes spread of European ash tree dieback

Under very rare circumstances a spatial mismatch caused by climate change can be a good thing. But before you start betting on compensating one ecological disturbance with another that’s possibly even more dangerous, we think perhaps we should discuss another … Continue reading →

Climate Change & Anthropocene Extinction 8: Locally biodiversity might increase, kick-starting (global) decline

As species migrate in response to climate change and do so at different rates and dispersal directions, extra ecosystem disturbances might arise, leading to temporary local biodiversity increases – fuelling a net (global) downward trend.

Climate Change & Anthropocene Extinction 7: Species’ competition increases biodiversity loss predictions

Quickly migrating species can keep track of climate change by migrating along the optimum of their climate zone habitat. Paradoxically these species increase the pressure on slower dispersers, increasing their extinction risk. Overall, adding such complex interspecies interaction to models … Continue reading →

After US also Europe falls prey to invasive Drosophila suzukii – plague threat

invasive drosophila fruit fly

Drosophila suzukii caught in Spain. Out of 3,000 Drosophilae species only two are damaging to fruit crops. Here is one, invading from Asia to the US and now Europe.

Coming from the Asian continent, Drosophila suzukii has only been in Spain for a short time. Far away from slipping through into the Iberian Peninsula, it accelerated towards the north of Europe where it has already crossed the Alps. Amongst its preferred target are cherries and red fruits but any type of fruit is suitable for it to lay its eggs. This insect is posing a threat to the fruit of more and more European countries.

Continue reading →

Nitrogen fertilisation by invasive species damages nutrient-poor ecosystems

Nitrogen fertilisation invasive species ecosystems

Nitrogen fertilisation invasive species damages nutrient-poor ecosystems. Picture shows the proliferating Australian Sydney golden wattle. Credit: Bielefeld University

Biologists at Bielefeld University have developed a new method for quantifying the effect of non-native species on ecosystem functioning.

They can now estimate whether native plants in the neighbourhood of invasive species incorporate the nitrogen fixed by the latter.

Continue reading →

Mediterranean biodiversity versus a globalising planet: from Suez Canal to your tuna pizza

“In reserves off Spain and Italy, we found the largest fish biomass in the Mediterranean. Unfortunately, around Turkey and Greece, the waters were bare” – Enric Sala, National Geographic Society.

Quantifying the invasive species problem, Florida´s case: 137 non-native reptiles & amphibians

Last week we took a look at the slowness of species migration before the age of the 747. Today we speed up time by a thousand – to get to the ecological reality of globalisation.

Inter-ocean transport before the age of globalisation

What happens on a daily basis now, used to occur just twice in millions of years – for this one horn snail at least. Snail’s airlift chance before age of globalisation: mistaking heron’s leg for reed?