Biological Invasions Simply Explained

No other ecological phenomenon captures public attention like a biological invasion—that is, the introduction and establishment of a species beyond its natural range, where it may proliferate and spread dramatically. Some invasions cause enormous ecological and socioeconomic impacts, which have provided much impetus for the explosion of research on the phenomenon over the past three decades. This research has contributed novel insights to ecology, conservation biology, biogeography, and evolutionary biology and is therefore highlighted in virtually all recent textbooks for these disciplines. The major concepts and questions driving the field of invasion science are summarized in the book Invasive Species, part of the What Everyone Needs to Know series by Oxford University Press. The author, Daniel Simberloff (Gore-Hunger Professor of Environmental Science at the University of Tennessee), addresses 65 fundamental questions of theoretical or applied importance, including the following: How and why do invasions occur? Can we predict which species will become invasive? How do we know when a species is introduced and not native? What new technologies will aid the detection of invasions? As one would expect from a leading practitioner, the material is well informed and up to date. Written in a conversational style, the book explains key concepts (such as time lags, biotic resistance, enemy release, invasional meltdown, passenger–driver models, and biotic homogenization) and demonstrates the myriad ways in which an invasive species can disrupt an ecosystem. Drawing on the burgeoning scientific literature and examples of nearly 600 nonnative species from freshwater, terrestrial, and marine systems across the globe, Simberloff identifies some broad ecological patterns (such as the propensity for disturbed habitats to be invaded, the disproportionate impacts of invasions on islands, and the apparent dearth of consequential invasions in boreal forests and in lowland tropical rainforests), but—as the saying goes—the devil is in the details: Contingency rules the outcome of invasions, making prediction extremely challenging. To emphasize this point, Simberloff describes unexpected chain reactions that can attend invasions, such as how the introduction of opossum shrimp into Flathead Lake, Montana, caused the bald eagle population to crash and how the introduction of a rabbit virus to Great Britain led to the local extinction of a rare butterfly species. We can sometimes explain these events after the fact, but forecasting them is another matter entirely. Simberloff also draws attention to mysterious phenomena, such as why some introduced species remain innocuous for decades before becoming invasive and why some explosive and damaging invasions quickly dissipate without human intervention. A particular strength of the book is its broad consideration of the human dimensions of the field. Entire chapters are devoted to regulation, prediction, detection, eradication, and control strategies for dealing with invasive species. They reveal a complex mélange of scientific and sociopolitical factors governing the success of management goals, such as eradication. In particular, Simberloff highlights ongoing efforts to keep Asian carp from spreading from the Mississippi River into the Great Lakes via the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. He describes the recent detection (through the analysis of environmental DNA) of carp in Lake Michigan waters, the resulting call by several stakeholder groups to close the locks that allow ships—and fish—to pass into Lake Michigan, and the strong political and economic pressures that oppose the closure. Simberloff's interest in invasions emerged in the late 1970s, when he began to view them as natural experiments that offered valuable insight into the forces that structure communities. Those years saw growing recognition among conservation biologists that invasive species posed a significant threat to biodiversity. In the early 1980s, the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment launched an international project that mobilized research on invasions through a series of workshops and an international conference involving ecologists, evolutionary biologists, geneticists, and mathematical modelers. After Simberloff participated in the North American workshops and also became engaged with The Nature Conservancy, it became clear to him that invasions were “a subject of great practical urgency and limitless scientific opportunity.” Since then, many others have reached the same conclusion, and invasion science has flourished. Despite a wealth of studies that ­rigorously demonstrate the ecological and socioeconomic costs of biological invasions, there has been a recent surge of opinion articles claiming that the impacts of nonnative species are exaggerated and that management attention is therefore unwarranted; some go so far as to question the value of invasion science as a field of study (but see Richardson and Ricciardi 2013). Simberloff does an admirable job addressing criticisms surrounding invasions and their management; the concise, logical summary provided in his introduction, alone, is essential reading. In the penultimate chapter, he elaborates on many controversies, such as how invasions affect biodiversity, whether efforts to control invasive species are xenophobic and futile, and whether animal rights should be a management consideration. A consequence of the format of this book series is that it allows no cited references, although Simberloff compensates somewhat by citing several researchers by name. Some footnotes and a brief set of recommended readings are provided for each chapter. There is also a glossary and an extensive appendix of species. The book is sparsely illustrated with a few drawings and black-and-white photographs, but there are no graphs or schematic figures that one might expect from an academic text. Consequently, it may not be well suited for use in a classroom (my preference would be Lockwood et al. 2013, which is written primarily for university students), although it offers all of the fundamental information needed for an interdisciplinary course on biological invasions. What motivated Simberloff to contribute to the Oxford series is that it is aimed at a very general audience. He justifies the need for this book by pointing to the accelerating global frequency of invasion, the rapid output of research findings and new management techniques, and the media attention given to critics and controversies “without the context that everyone needs to assess the criticisms intelligently.” His contribution will prove to be valuable for managers, policymakers, science reporters, interested students, and any other educated reader who desires to be well informed about this global environmental problem.

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