Invasive Species of Florida Many people think that everything in a given environment was supposed to be there, that is not the case. What if I told you that sometimes animals or plants end up in an area that they were not supposed to be. This happens more often than you would think. When a species ends up in an area it’s not supposed to be this can have negative effects on the environment and the wildlife in it. Many snakes including the Burmese Python have been showing up in the Everglades National Park in Florida. The Burmese Python is one of the largest snake species on the planet, and now are breeding in the Everglades. Most of the Burmese Pythons that were originally introduced to the Everglades were people buying them as pets and releasing
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Lionfish were originally spotted of Florida’s Atlantic coast near Diana Beach back in 1985. The invasion of Lionfish started with only a few fish and it is unknown how they got there, but it was likely to have followed up currents on the Atlantic Coast, to the Bahamas, and into the Gulf. Lionfish are reef fish that are predators, they eat the native fish and reduce their populations having a negative effect on the reef’s habitat. Such as they can eat fish that are algae eaters causing the reef to have way too much algae, or they eat some of the smaller native fish that larger native fish should be eating. When Lionfish reproduce they lay two masses of eggs each with 12,000 to 15,000 eggs each. This causes them to reproduce very quickly making it very hard to eliminate them. To get rid of the lionfish “The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourages people to remove lionfish from Florida waters to help limit negative impacts to native marine life and ecosystems. Lionfish can be speared, caught in hand-held nets or caught on hook and line and there is no recreational or commercial bag limit” …show more content…
Tegus are a large lizard species that is sold in pet stores, some biologists think that it is possible for the invasion of these large lizards to become as bad as the Burmese Python. Most Tegus were introduced to wildlife in Florida in and near the Everglades because they were pets who were freed by their owners or escaped, they then reproduced and now there are many all over the Everglades area. Biologists have not been able to get enough resources to deal with wild Tegus on a large scale. The Tegu is an omnivore which means it will eat just about anything. They have been threating native birds, alligators, and crocodiles. To try to get rid of Tegus Trapping and selling of them is legal and there are many research teams putting out traps and trying to figure out how to stop them. They have caught about 500 wild Tegus at this point. It is clearly seen that invasive species all around the world are a big problem damaging environments, killing other animals, and making other animals die because of their bacteria or because they are competing for the prey. It is hard for scientists and research teams to get rid of these species because it can become very expensive to eradicate them. You can help with this problem by simply calling your local police department or animal control of you see an invasive species near you, then animal services will come and retrieve that animal.
Lionfish were originally spotted of Florida’s Atlantic coast near Diana Beach back in 1985. The invasion of Lionfish started with only a few fish and it is unknown how they got there, but it was likely to have followed up currents on the Atlantic Coast, to the Bahamas, and into the Gulf. Lionfish are reef fish that are predators, they eat the native fish and reduce their populations having a negative effect on the reef’s habitat. Such as they can eat fish that are algae eaters causing the reef to have way too much algae, or they eat some of the smaller native fish that larger native fish should be eating. When Lionfish reproduce they lay two masses of eggs each with 12,000 to 15,000 eggs each. This causes them to reproduce very quickly making it very hard to eliminate them. To get rid of the lionfish “The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) encourages people to remove lionfish from Florida waters to help limit negative impacts to native marine life and ecosystems. Lionfish can be speared, caught in hand-held nets or caught on hook and line and there is no recreational or commercial bag limit” …show more content…
Tegus are a large lizard species that is sold in pet stores, some biologists think that it is possible for the invasion of these large lizards to become as bad as the Burmese Python. Most Tegus were introduced to wildlife in Florida in and near the Everglades because they were pets who were freed by their owners or escaped, they then reproduced and now there are many all over the Everglades area. Biologists have not been able to get enough resources to deal with wild Tegus on a large scale. The Tegu is an omnivore which means it will eat just about anything. They have been threating native birds, alligators, and crocodiles. To try to get rid of Tegus Trapping and selling of them is legal and there are many research teams putting out traps and trying to figure out how to stop them. They have caught about 500 wild Tegus at this point. It is clearly seen that invasive species all around the world are a big problem damaging environments, killing other animals, and making other animals die because of their bacteria or because they are competing for the prey. It is hard for scientists and research teams to get rid of these species because it can become very expensive to eradicate them. You can help with this problem by simply calling your local police department or animal control of you see an invasive species near you, then animal services will come and retrieve that animal.