Dorothy and Toto aren’t the one ones identified to hitch a experience on a passing extreme climate occasion.
by Ross Williams, for Georgia Recorder
A map from the U.S. Geological Survey finds that there are 222 doable non-native species that had the potential to unfold in Georgia and Florida as a consequence of storm-related flooding from Hurricane Helene, which devastated southern states together with Georgia in September. The checklist contains 90 species thought-about invasive and more likely to unfold through flood waters.
And whereas the well-known Kansas duo’s journey to the magical land of Oz was dangerous information for the Depraved Witch of the East, these out-of-place critters are potential issues for all Georgians, stated Mike Worley, president of the Georgia Wildlife Federation.
“These plants or animals come into an area, and they are uniquely adapted to the area in which they evolved, and they generally will have their own set of predators, they’ll have checks on their population, but they come into a new area – and all these invasive species are getting here because we’re bringing them in some way, either intentionally or accidentally – and suddenly they find a new niche in the world where there’s no checks on them,” he stated.
With out these checks, invasive species can decimate native creatures, which may disrupt the whole meals chain.
“If you live in Georgia because you like Georgia, then invasives are a problem because they can fundamentally change it. They can fundamentally change the nature, they can change the very essence of what we are,” Worley added.
The species monitored within the USGS’s map embrace all the pieces from vegetation and algae to fish, reptiles and crustaceans. The survey offers an interactive map of the place completely different species have already been seen and the place Helene-related flooding could have washed them up.
One creature on the checklist is the Cuban treefrog, a local to the island nation that has unfold to Florida, Georgia and different spots throughout the continental U.S., normally via meals or plant shipments, particularly palm bushes, or hidden in constructing supplies.
They appear cute, however the slimy little fellas could cause lots of hassle. In accordance with the USGS, not solely do they compete with and even prey on native treefrogs, however they’ve been discovered to host illnesses and parasites that may hurt people and different frogs, and their pores and skin secretes a chemical that may irritate the pores and skin and eyes, they usually have even been noticed to trigger energy outages when involved with electrical tools.
The USGS map reveals they’ve the potential to unfold through flooding across the north and south metro Atlanta areas in addition to close to Augusta, Peachtree Metropolis, Valdosta and Waycross.
Even vegetation could cause issues in the event that they wash up within the mistaken a part of the world. Take the alligator weed, which grows natively within the Parana River area of South America, in Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay, the place its hole stems assist it to drift on the water in thick mats. They’ve established footholds in areas throughout the southeast and all alongside the Gulf of Mexico stowing away in ship ballast water, researchers imagine.
When clusters of alligator weed present up unannounced, they’ll impede the circulation of water, lowering water high quality and harming different species that stay within the water or depend upon it for meals. They could be a nuisance to boaters by blocking waterways and to farmers by clogging up irrigation channels, and so as to add insult to damage, they make glorious breeding grounds for pests like mosquitos.
As if that weren’t dangerous sufficient, a brand new plant can develop from a reduce off piece of an previous one, which makes eliminating them much more difficult as soon as they’ve turn out to be established.
Earlier than the storm these meanie greenies had been already current in watersheds from Athens to Valdosta, and researchers say they may very well be popping up in new our bodies of water.
However whereas solely an exquisite wizard can management the climate, there are steps Georgians can take to maintain critters the place they belong, Worley stated. For campers, which means not bringing in firewood from different states; for boaters, it means cleansing out your techniques earlier than transferring on to the following lake or stream; and for gardeners, it will possibly imply solely planting native vegetation in your yard.
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