Invasive Species Harm Local Wildlife
S A L E M, Ore. July 11 -- Animal immigrants — from microscopiczooplankton to deer — are eating away at the American landscape and destroying native species.
More than 5,000 of these alien species are in the United States,causing an estimated $140 billion in damage annually to crops,water supplies and native habitats, according to national experts.
In Oregon, the invaders are destroying salmon populations,wiping out Dungeness crab, killing off eastern white pine, gobblingthreatened frog species and turning freshwater lakes into marshywetlands.
Zebra Mussel Tops List
But Oregon is just a tiny piece of the picture. Invasive speciesare being called one of the greatest threats to biodiversityworldwide, second only to habitat loss. The most destructivenon-native species are the ones with no natural predators in theiradoptive environments.
“Invasives are in the process of causing wholesaleextinctions,” said Bruce Coblentz, a wildlife ecologist andprofessor at Oregon State University. “We have many native speciesnow that I call the living dead.”
Unwanted organisms come into the United States in a number ofways, including in ballast water dumped from international ships.Scientists think that’s how zebra mussels, one of the mosteconomically damaging organisms to invade the U.S.,reached American shores.
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has a list of about100 vertebrate creatures strictly prohibited in Oregon, includingwildebeest, hedgehogs and many turtles and bullfrogs. Severalhundred other species may come into Oregon lawfully, but only understrict controls.
The issue has recently garnered some attention — from federalproposals to several books — but it may be too little too late. Thenumber of non-native species is huge and agencies have troublecoordinating their efforts.
In Oregon, the State Departments of Agriculture, Fish andWildlife and Marine Board all are trying to protect native species,but officials say the task is daunting.
