A Brief History
On August 19, 2017, over 300,000 Atlantic Salmon being raised offshore in a pen escaped when the pen failed due to a lack of maintenance. Almost ready for harvest and sale, the Salmon are not native to the Pacific coast and present a danger of being an invasive species that could hurt native populations of Pacific Salmon.
Digging Deeper
Invasive species present an extreme ecological problem around the world, sometimes introduced on purpose, such as the common Carp, Pigeons, and Starlings, and other times completely by accident due to shipping, such as Zebra and Quagga Mussels, or escaped from farming operations, such as Asian Carp in the Mississippi waterways. The Sea Lamprey got into the Great Lakes via the St. Lawrence Seaway and devastated the Lake Trout population.
While Florida is plagued with invasive Pythons, Iguanas, Monitor Lizards, Monkeys, and even Nile Crocodiles, other invasive species are more welcome, such as Ring-Necked Pheasants and Steelhead Trout.
Note: Many countries all over the world struggle with invasive species, including Cane Toads rabbits and even Camels in Australia, Canada and Europe are invaded by American crawfish, and feral hogs devastate much of the American landscape. Fish are a common invasive animal, including Round Gobies and White Perch in the Great Lakes, Lionfish in the Caribbean, and giant Wels catfish in Europe. In Africa, the Nile Perch and various types of Tilapia have devastated local fish populations. The much reviled Rat, including Black, Norway and Pacific Rats, are invasive in the US and elsewhere. Even insects, bugs and germs can be invasive, as well as a wide variety of plants.
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: What is the worst invasive species?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Ikang, Odd-Ivar. Salmon Farming. 5m Books Ltd, 2024.
Smith, Roland. They Are Here!: How Invasive Species Are Spoiling Our Ecosystems. Godwin Books, 2023.
