World losing high-stakes fight against alien species

By Marlowe HOOD
Paris (AFP) Sept 4, 2023
Invasive species that wreck crops, ravage forests, spread disease, and upend ecosystems are spreading ever faster across the globe, and humanity has not been able to stem the tide, a major scientific assessment said Monday.

The failure is costing well over $400 billion dollars a year in damages and lost income -- the equivalent to the GDP of Denmark or Thailand -- and that is likely a "gross underestimation", according to the intergovernmental science advisory panel for the UN Convention on Biodiversity (IPBES).

From water hyacinth choking Lake Victoria in East Africa, to rats and brown snakes wiping out bird species in the Pacific, to mosquitoes exposing new regions to Zika, yellow fever, dengue and other diseases, the report catalogued more than 37,000 so-called alien species that have taken root -- often literally -- far from their places of origin.

That number is trending sharply upward, along with the bill for the damage multiplying fourfold per decade, on average, since 1970.

Economic expansion, population increase and climate change "will increase the frequency and extent of biological invasions and the impacts of invasive alien species," the report concluded.

Only 17 percent of countries have laws or regulations to manage this onslaught, it said.

Whether by accident or on purpose, when non-native species wind up on the other side of the world, humans are to blame.

The spread of species is hard evidence that the rapid expansion of human activity has so radically altered natural systems as to tip the Earth into a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene, scientists say.

- Hitchhikers -

The hyacinth that at one point covered 90 percent of Lake Victoria -- crippling transport, smothering aquatic life, blocking hydroelectric dam intake and breeding mosquitoes -- is thought to have been introduced by Belgian colonial officials in Rwanda as an ornamental garden flower before making its way down the Kagera River in the 1980s.

The Florida Everglades is teeming with the destructive offspring of erstwhile pets and house plants, from five-metre (16-foot) Burmese pythons and walking catfish to Old World climbing fern and Brazilian pepper.

In the 19th century English settlers brought rabbits to New Zealand to hunt and for food. When they multiplied like, well, rabbits, officials imported ferocious little carnivores called stoats to reduce their numbers.

But the stoats went after easier prey: dozens of endemic bird species that were soon decimated, from baby Kiwis to wrybills.

New Zealand and Australia -- where a similar bad-to-worse saga involving rabbits unfolded -- are "case studies" of how not to control one imported pest with another, Elaine Murphy, a scientist at New Zealand's Department of Conservation, told AFP.

More often, however, invasive species are accidental arrivals, hitching rides in the ballast water of cargo ships, the containers in their holds, or in a tourist's suitcase.

The Mediterranean Sea is full of non-native fish and plants, such as lionfish and killer alga, that journeyed from the Red Sea through the Suez Canal.

- Vulnerable small islands -

Murder hornets capable of wiping out entire bee colonies in a single attack are thought to have arrived in the US from Asia as stowaways in freight.

Largely due to huge volumes of trade, Europe and North America have the world's largest concentrations of invasive species, defined as those that are non-native and cause harm and have relocated due to human activity, the IPBES report shows.

Invasive spe cies are a significant cause in 60 percent of all documented plant or animal extinctions, one of five main drivers along with habitat loss, global warming and pollution, according to the findings.

These drivers interact: climate change has pushed alien species into newly warmed waters or lands where native species are often vulnerable to intruders they have never encountered.

The deadly fire that reduced the Hawaiian town of Lahaina on Maui to ashes last month was fuelled in part by bone-dry grasses -- imported decades ago to feed livestock -- that has spread across abandoned sugar plantations.

A global treaty to protect biodiversity hammered out in Montreal last December sets a target of reducing the rate at which invasive alien species spread by half by 2030.

The IPBES report lays out general strategies for achieving this goal, but does not assess the chances of it being met.

There are basically three lines of defence, according to the report -- prevention, eradication and then, failing that, containment.

Attempts at eradication have generally failed in large bodies of water and open waterways, as well as on large tracts of contiguous land. The places with the highest rate of success in removing unwanted guests -- especially rats and other vertebrates -- are also the ones that have proved most vulnerable: small islands.

---

Artificial Intelligence Analysis

Summary:

This article discusses the global spread of alien species, which cause economic damages of well over $400 billion dollars a year and are rapidly increasing. It notes that humans are responsible for introducing these species, either intentionally or unintentionally, and that only 17 percent of countries have laws or regulations to manage them.

Economic Implications:

The economic implications of alien species are profound, as they cause well over $400 billion dollars in damages and lost income each year. They also have the potential to increase fourfold in terms of damages and lost income per decade, making this a major economic issue.

Environmental Implications:

The environmental implications of alien species are significant, as they can upend ecosystems and ravage forests. They can also spread diseases and choke waterways, leading to a decrease in aquatic life and difficulty for transportation and hydroelectric dams.Safety Implications:

The safety implications of alien species are varied, as they can spread diseases such as Zika, yellow fever, dengue, and more. They can also lead to the destruction of bird species, further diminishing safety.Geopolitical and Societal Impacts:

The geopolitical and societal impacts of alien species are substantial, as they are evidence of human activity having a significant impact on natural systems. They are also indicative of the fact that only 17 percent of countries have laws or regulations to manage these species, leaving many countries unprepared to combat this issue.

Conclusion

& Implications:

The global spread of alien species is a major issue, causing severe economic, environmental, and safety implications. It is evidence of the rapid expansion of human activity and is indicative of the fact that only a small portion of countries have laws or regulations to manage these species. Further investigation is needed to gain further clarity on this issue and to explore potential future outcomes.

Comparison to Star Trek:

This issue is similar to an episode of Star Trek:

The Next Generation called Identity Crisis, in which an alien species invades a planet and begins to wreak havoc. The crew must find a way to contain the spread of the species before it causes further damage. This parallels the issue of alien species spreading across the globe and causing a multitude of impacts.

Investigative Questions:

• What are the current laws and regulations in place to manage alien species?
• How can countries better prepare themselves for the spread of alien species?
• What are the long-term economic, environmental, and safety implications of alien species?
• What strategies can be used to reduce the spread of alien species?

This AI report is generated by a sophisticated prompt to a ChatGPT API. Our editors clean text for presentation, but preserve AI thought for our collective observation. Please comment and ask questions about AI use by Spacedaily. We appreciate your support and contribution to better trade news.

---