Invaders Betrayed by DNA

Planting RNA on the Farm

wugongliang submitted, created time 1 year 2 months (sciencenow.sciencemag.org)

Researchers have hit upon a new way to stop the pesky critters that destroy crops: They've genetically engineered plants to express insect-killing RNA molecules. The new approach could pave the way for more targeted--and environmentally friendly--pest control.

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Invasion, stress, and spinal arthritis in cane toads

bianjie submitted, created time 1 year 2 months (www.pnas.org)

The impact of invasive species on biodiversity has attracted considerable study, but impacts of the invasion process on the invaders themselves remain less clear. Invading species encounter conditions different from those in their ancestral habitats and are subject to intense selection for rapid dispersal.

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Arthritis fails to slow horde of cane toads approaching Darwin

Darkfrog submitted, created time 1 year 2 months (www.nytimes.com)

The cane toads, native to South America, have eaten so much sweet Australian food that they've become too fat for their own bones. The toads approaching Darwin are plagued by arthritis: An earlier study found that the toads on the leading edge of the expansion have longer legs for faster movement, but about 10% of them also have spinal abnormalities. Evolution in action, my friends: New environment, new developments, and some individuals fall by the wayside

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Sex change wipes out invasive species

red monkey submitted, created time 1 year 5 months (www.nature.com)

New research demonstrates Gender-bending chemicals could provide a new way to combat invasive species.

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Distribution and abundance of Ponto-Caspian amphipods in the Belarusian section of the Dnieper River

Alone submitted, created time 1 year 5 months (aquaticinvasions.ru)

During a survey of the Belarusian part of the Dnieper River conducted on 19-22 July 2006, we revealed five invasive Ponto-Caspian amphipod species in its benthos community: Chaetogammarus ischnus, Chelicorophium curvispinum, Dikerogammarus haemobaphes, Dikerogammarus villosus and Pontogammarus robustoides. All of them except C. curvispinum are reported in Belarus for the first time. The number of alien amphipod species and their abundance were found to decrease gradually in the upper sections of the river.

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Symbiotic bacteria may save endangered frogs

Darkfrog submitted, created time 1 year 8 months (www.nature.com)

I'm a bit leery of introducing one species to control another -- in this case, probiotic bacteria to kill a fungus that's killing off several amphibian species -- but if the frogs are on the brink of extinction, it might be worth the risk.

What do you think? The stakes are high. Just think of the damage the bacteria could do if something goes wrong. This is a genie-out-of-the-bottle trick. Nothing's going back in.

Submit comment | Blog It | Email It | Keywords: symbiotic bacteria Bacteria Resistant bacteria species amphibians zoology invasive species fungus ecology extinction

Alien plants attack using 'resource conservation' as weapon, researchers say

deirdre submitted, created time 1 year 8 months (www.eurekalert.org)

Invaders thrive best in regions where there is an abundance of materials for growth, such as water, nutrients and light. Biologists have long assumed that alien species pose less of a threat in resource-poor environments because they are less able to compete with indigenous plants, which have adapted to their habitats over thousands of years. But a new study by Stanford University researchers finds that invasive plants can flourish in low-resource environments by adopting efficient ways to use available resources

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Cane toads keep on coming

cappuccion submitted, created time 1 year 9 months (www.nature.com)

Invasive amphibians could double their present extent in Australia, study warns. Since cane toads were introduced to Australia in 1935, they have colonized 1.2 million square kilometres of that country — an area greater than that of France and Spain combined. But they might just be getting started, says an analysis that suggests they could double their current range. The toads' spread seems to be partly due to their ability to adapt to survive in a broader range of climates.If they are evolving then our current predictions may be conservative.

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Invasive Species, Air Potatoes take over.

channel submitted, created time 1 year 10 months (www.nature.org)

The name sounds harmless, even laughable. But air potatoes are anything but funny. Established in the United States by gardeners who admired its attractive leaves, it soon spread beyond garden borders and is now wreaking havoc on wild lands by displacing native species. Get more information about this horrible plant, could you enumerate more invasive species?? And how we control their spread?

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