1. Announcements April 4, 2011 Program in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation Biology Bradley Cosentino " Metapopulation dynamics and spatial genetics of the tiger salamander ” Wednesday, March 16, 2011 4:00 P.M. B102 CLSL Auditorium
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3. Python Explodes After Eating Alligator October 5, 2005 MIAMI, (AP) Alligators have clashed with nonnative pythons before in Everglades National Park. But when a 6-foot gator tangled with a 13-foot python recently, the result wasn ’t pretty. The snake apparently tried to swallow the gator whole — and then exploded. The gators have had to share their territory with a python population that has swelled over the past 20 years after owners dropped off pythons they no longer wanted in the Everglades. The Asian snakes have thrived in the wet, hot climate.
4. Percentage of threatened or endangered species in the U.S. imperiled by: Why are species declining? Disease - 3% Overexploitation - 17% Pollution - 24% Invasive species - 49% Habitat degradation and loss - 85% Dave Wilcove et al. 1998 BioScience
5. Introduced (non-native, exotic) - species introduced deliberately or accidentally from somewhere else Definitions: Domestic/Feral (released pets, livestock and game animals) - can spread disease, compete with native species Human commensal or subsidized (out of control natives) - native species that benefit from our land use (disturbance) Invasive species - species that spread subsequent to establishment usually at some cost.
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7. Snake Escape Makes Zoo Squirm MARCH 28, 2011 An Egyptian cobra was still on the loose at the Bronx Zoo Sunday after slithering out of its enclosure Friday afternoon. Zoo keepers shut down the Reptile House "until further notice" to look for the venomous 20-inch snake. Officials said the cobra's reclusive nature meant it posed little danger to the public.
11. “ Forecast and control of epidemics in a globalized world.” Hufnagel et al. PNAS 2004
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13. Why study biological invasions? Unique opportunities for basic research community ecology animal behavior evolution Consequences threaten biodiversity costly widespread
14. Estimated annual costs associated with non-native species: Group costs (in millions) Plants (purple loosestrife, weeds) 34,000 Mammals (feral pigs, rats) 37,000 Birds (pigeons, starlings) 2,000 Fishes 1,000 Arthropods (ants, termites, other pests) 19,000 Mollusks (zebra mussel, asian clam) 1,200 Microbes (plant pathogens, animal disease) 41,000 All organisms over $136 billion per year Source: Pimentel et al. 2000 BioScience
26. Monster cane toad found in Australia Wed Mar 28, 2007 SYDNEY (Reuters) - A huge cane toad the size of a small dog has been captured in the Australian tropical city of Darwin, startling environmentalists who are fighting to stop the poisonous amphibians spread across the country. "It's a monster toad," said Paul Cowdy from FrogWatch which captured the cane toad on Monday night. "We've never seen a cane toad this big," he said on Tuesday. "It's a male and normally females are bigger."
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31. Northern Snakehead ( Channa argus ) Found in Maryland in 2002 Giant snakehead ( Channa micropeltes ) found in Wisconsin in 2003 Fish
32. Laurentian Great Lakes www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/images/ great-lakes-ice-avhrr.gi Superior Michigan Huron Erie Ontario Mills et al. 1993 Over 140 exotic species Many fish species were (and continue to be) released intentionally Many other exotics have entered the lake accidentally: Escape from captivity Canals Bait buckets, live wells and gear Ballast water
33. Welland Canal Begun in 1829 Niagara Falls was the major obstacle to an uninterrupted waterway
34. Sea Lamprey ( Petromyzon marinus ) Invaded the Great Lakes after the opening of the Welland Canal Devastated native fish stocks, especially lake trout
36. Asian Carp in the Great Lakes? This Means War! By Bryan Walsh Tuesday, Feb. 09, 2010 There are illegal immigrants on the loose in the Midwest. Originally hailing from Asia, they're about 3 ft. (90 cm) long and weigh up to 100 lb. (45 kg), and are known to resist capture. Once they establish residency, they can eat you out of house and home. They're called Asian carp, and they emigrated to the lower reaches of the Mississippi River in the 1970s. Now they're knocking on the door of the Great Lakes, threatening to destroy one of the most valuable aquatic regions in the U.S., unless the often fractious Great Lakes states manage to pull together and keep them out. The situation is so serious that the White House convened an "Asian carp summit" on Monday to work out a defense plan.
38. ZEBRA MUSSEL — Dreissena polymorpha Found in 1988 in Lake St. Clair (Lake between Huron and Erie, just off of Detroit, MI). Likely came to North America in ballast water Up to 70,000 individuals per m 2
39. Also attaches to boat hulls, docks, locks, breakwaters and navigation aids, increasing maintenance costs and impeding waterborne transport. One of the most expensive exotic species Will biofoul and restrict the flow of water through intake pipes (drinking, cooling, processing and irrigating water)
40. How to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species? Empty all water before leaving site Never dump bait buckets!! Before leaving site, inspect gear, boats and trailers for exotics Let equipment dry for several days (does not work for species with resting eggs) Rinse your boat and equipment with high pressure hot water, especially if moored for more than a day
44. Biological Control: The use of one species to control another. Usually a specialist predator or parasite of an invasive species. Needs to be species specific or could cause even worse problems.
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46. What can you do to stop the spread of exotics? http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/
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