The "Plant that ate the South", aka Kudzu, overtaking an abaondoned builing. (Photo Credit: Johnny Randall, North Carolina Botanical Garden, Bugwood.org.)
Embedded Files
Invasion Biology
Invasion Biology
"No one is happy with the species they have."
I had the great pleasure of studying Invasion Biology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville with Dr. Daniel Simberloff, one of the world's leading experts on biological invasions, and his wonderful TA and graduate student Krista DeCooke. I hope my future projects allow me to work with them again.
In this class, I learned how biological systems deal with novel changes, such as the arrival of a new species. As part of the curriculum, I wrote a series of reports on an invasive species of my choice: giant hogweed. Here you will find a copy of my report, edited to be read online.
Invasion of the Giant Hogweed
Invasion of the Giant Hogweed
An army of giant green invaders speckled with splotches of purple pigment and adorned with white crowns stands before you. They stand tall and close together; the sunlight can not pass through them to reach the ground below. Although you may be fascinated by their alien size and color palette, you must not get too close. If you do, the slightest touch from these exotic beings will send you reeling in agony with a severe burn to remind you of the time you got too close to the invader.
A fully grown speciemen of giant hogweed. (By Fritz Geller-Grimm - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5595612)
An invasive Burmese Python (Photo Credit: USGS)
Want to learn more?
Want to learn more?
If you would like to learn more about invasive species, then I highly recommend Dr. Simberloff's book, Invasive Species: What Everyone Needs to Know. It is a great reference for all things invasive from the history of the field itself, to current invasive species and their impacts, to future prevention and management strategies. Additionally, there are others such as Rachel Carson's classic Silent Spring and Aldo Leopold's A Sand County Almanac: And Sketches Here and There, which can be also be found at most public libraries.
Note: I do not receive anything from promoting these books; I just think they are quality books that people need to read.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse