Invasive Species Essay

Billions of dollars of property damage, irreparable damage to native ecosystems, flora, and fauna, and posing a severe threat to human health, invasive species have grown to be a unique plague that threatens most, if not all, of the 7 continents. Invasive species are an epidemic to the world, causing environmental and property damage, spreading illness, and destroying local ecosystems. By learning how to identify invasive species, understand how they’re dangerous, and learning to prevent their spread, people can nip the epidemic of invasive species in the bud.

Mosquitoes, bed bugs, stink bugs, and more; humanity's greatest insect nemeses. While it’s easy to generalize these insects into the invasive species category, not all species are invasive

It must harm property, the economy, or the native plants and animals of the region”. Species that are invasive pose a threat to both humans and the habitants of the environments they’re invading. By altering the environment, invasive species interrupt the process of natural selection and the wellness of life of those residing in the natural habitat. It’s ability to reproduce quickly means that the lack of natural predators allows the species to grow out of control, consuming food and resources necessary for other animals - and people - to survive. In some cases, this can spread to humans as well, with crops and homes being destroyed and damaged by out of control invasive species. To add on, invasive species are known to “outcompete native species for food … thrive because there are no predators that hunt them … destroy habitat … [and] do great harm to the economy” (National Geographic) These four categories are the backbone of defining an invasive species. By outcompeting native species for food, invasive species run the risk of literally eating species out of their habitats. In the real world, paddlefish residing in the Missouri River don’t have enough food to

It may seem like it’s impossible to combat their spread, but in reality, there’s much people can do, Such as identifying and reporting invasive species and educating others on what to do. Reporting sightings of invasive species is like voting, though it may not feel as though it will make a difference, “… reports can alert experts about newer invasive species that haven’t taken over Washington yet” (WISC). By bringing attention to invasive species habitating new places, researchers can begin preventative measures before it becomes an outbreak that’s harder to control. If an invasive species goes unnoticed in an environment for too long, it may cause damage that’s irreparable to both the habitat of the natural inhabitants and the animals themselves. A familiar example of this is house cats. While they seem to be innocuous, cats are responsible for the mass killing of billions of birds and small mammals yearly. While reporting a house cat wouldn’t make any change, reporting a new species could prevent the situation from escalating any more than it needs to. To add on, educating people on species that are invasive can cut down on cases where “… experts identify that a reported invasive species actually is a native species … we will provide information to help landowners manage the invasive species” (WISC). Protecting native species is just as important as