Invasive species is defined as a non-native organism that has negative impacts on the environment, the well being of surrounding species (including humans), and the economy. For an organism to become invasive it must first be an introduced non-native species, then an established species, and then it must thrive and reproduce to be considered invasive. Only about ten percent of all the species move from one group to the next and finally become invasive. In the end, very few species can be considered invasive, but the ones that fit the category are harmful in many ways. The trip to the Pool Wildlife Sanctuary brought to light many species that are not native to the Lehigh Valley area and have had several effects on the surrounding area. One major
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This plant was introduced from Asia in the mid-1800s and has spread throughout the eastern and central United States (Yurkonis). The shade-tolerant species is an evergreen woody vine that grows under dense canopies (Invasive). This plant was not brought over for a medical purpose, but simply for ornamental reasons (Surrette). L. japonica is very difficult to eradicate because it grows many fruits that has several seeds inside each of them. These fruits are a source of food for herbivores and omnivores. The most common consumers are deer and birds, but primarily birds. Birds act as a great vector for these plants because the undigested part of the fruit, usually the seed, is excreted from the bird as waste. Since birds cover large areas, the Japanese honeysuckle can also reach many areas. The surrounding environments and species are not adapted to this species being present and suffer because of it due to a lack of …show more content…
japonica and surrounding species. Surrette and Stephen explored whether or not there was a relationship between the Japanese honeysuckle and hardwood and hardwood-Pinus forests of Mississippi. They investigated many things but the relevant question was their number two: what is the relationship between plant diversity/composition and the percent cover of L. japonica, after accounting for many other environmental factors? (Surrette). Their initial hypothesis was that there was a weak correlation between the appearances of the Japanese honeysuckle and the diversity/composition of surrounding species (Surrette). Basically, if there was Japanese honeysuckle present you could expect a normal amount or a very minute change in the amount of the native species present because they did not correlate with each other; however, their research proved differently. High L. japonica cover was associated with high disturbance in the surrounding landscape and high canopy density, whereas low L. japonica cover was associated with low disturbance in the surrounding landscape, low canopy density, and high species richness (Surrette). These findings are not very surprising because L. japonica is a vine that given the opportunity, will wrap around canopies and exist there. Also this species is considered an invasive species, so it is expected to cause disturbances in the surrounding landscape. In the discussion section it states
This plant was introduced from Asia in the mid-1800s and has spread throughout the eastern and central United States (Yurkonis). The shade-tolerant species is an evergreen woody vine that grows under dense canopies (Invasive). This plant was not brought over for a medical purpose, but simply for ornamental reasons (Surrette). L. japonica is very difficult to eradicate because it grows many fruits that has several seeds inside each of them. These fruits are a source of food for herbivores and omnivores. The most common consumers are deer and birds, but primarily birds. Birds act as a great vector for these plants because the undigested part of the fruit, usually the seed, is excreted from the bird as waste. Since birds cover large areas, the Japanese honeysuckle can also reach many areas. The surrounding environments and species are not adapted to this species being present and suffer because of it due to a lack of …show more content…
japonica and surrounding species. Surrette and Stephen explored whether or not there was a relationship between the Japanese honeysuckle and hardwood and hardwood-Pinus forests of Mississippi. They investigated many things but the relevant question was their number two: what is the relationship between plant diversity/composition and the percent cover of L. japonica, after accounting for many other environmental factors? (Surrette). Their initial hypothesis was that there was a weak correlation between the appearances of the Japanese honeysuckle and the diversity/composition of surrounding species (Surrette). Basically, if there was Japanese honeysuckle present you could expect a normal amount or a very minute change in the amount of the native species present because they did not correlate with each other; however, their research proved differently. High L. japonica cover was associated with high disturbance in the surrounding landscape and high canopy density, whereas low L. japonica cover was associated with low disturbance in the surrounding landscape, low canopy density, and high species richness (Surrette). These findings are not very surprising because L. japonica is a vine that given the opportunity, will wrap around canopies and exist there. Also this species is considered an invasive species, so it is expected to cause disturbances in the surrounding landscape. In the discussion section it states