Production Method for Paraffin Section of Invasive Species of Bemisia tabaci

[Objective] The purpose was to introduce a preparation method for paraffin section of Bemisia tabaci, so as to lay the foundation for the studies on changes of organizational structure of B. tabaci. [ Method] The technique of paraffin section and the method of H-E staining were adopted to study the organizational structure of B. tabaci. The slices were examined and photographed under fluorescence microscope. [ Result] The coloring of H-E staining cells was good. Under 400 x conditions, the fat body, compound eyes, nucleus and muscle of B. tabaci were clear. [ Conclusion] The production method for paraffin section of B. tabaci was reliable, and the quality of slices was high.

The Invasive Species of Walhalla Area in Columbus, Ohio

Invasive species are plants, animals, or pathogens that are non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration and whose introduction causes or is likely to cause harm. Invasive species can harm both the natural resources in an ecosystem as well as threaten human use of these resources. Walhalla is an urban wooded ravine area (10 acre area) in the middle of Columbus, Ohio. Many residents are actually actively planting new invasive species in a misguided attempt to prevent erosion on their property. Other properties are suffering from not-so-benign neglect, as the existing trees are slowly succumbing to insect infestation and rot (because of moisture trapped by ivy, etc.) and no new saplings are emerging to replace them (because of the thick ground cover). In both of these instances, it’s proving to be difficult to convince the landowners that they’re causing more harm than good—the local soil & water conservation people are all too eager to reinforce the notion that the ground must be covered with a blanket of impenetrable invasive species in order to prevent erosion. The objectives of this study were to collect and identify the invasive species in Walhalla area in order to educate the residents about these species and its impact on their properties and gardens;moreover, using the findings of this project to develop a plan to remove these dangerous species. This survey has documented 18 invasive species in 18 families. Two notable invasive species were found in this area, Alliaria petiolata (M. Bieb.) Cavara & Grande and Hedera helix L. (English Ivy). The found invasive species have an abundant growth in the studied area. The studied area has had no previous botanical collecting. Therefore, the area was in an urgent need to be inventoried and analyzed in order to identify and document its invasive species. Moreover, these identified species will be used for educational purposes for the residents of this area and well rounded plan is developed to remove these harmful species. This inventory represents a model for the other residential and agricultural areas in the state to follow, which will help overcome the negative impact and damage caused by the invasive species in these areas.

Propagation Model of Invasive Species:Road Systems as Dispersion Facilitators

The globalization of the planet allowed plant species to emerge from their traditional habitats and spread to other territories.This dispersion,sometimes occasional,sometimes by the influence of man,reaches proportions today that,in some cases,affect the development of natural ecosystems and their sustainability.Thus,becomes imperative to know seeds dispersion occur,since only after can be taken measures to mitigate these processes.In the same way that natural communication paths,such as rivers,are responsible for the natural dispersal of seeds,man-made communication paths,such as road systems,can allow very rapid dispersion.This review article addresses this issue,raising a problem that can be observed in Portugal,but which can easily be transposed to other territories of the Mediterranean basin,given the similarities in these territories.The dispersion model described here,called Highway Flow Model,intends to show the mechanisms of seed dispersion through road systems,mainly due to the configuration of the road profiles,but also by the processes associated with the cleaning of the roadsides.This demonstrates the need to take measures,such as cleaning and inspecting the equipment used to clean roadside berths before moving them to a new service elsewhere.

Intensive Agricultural Practices as Enhancers of the Dispersion of Invasive Species:Notification of the Observation of a Case with Robinia pseudoacacia L.in Alentejo(Southern Portugal)

Invasive forest species are a recurring problem,which in Portugal assume a somewhat mediatic role,both because of the impacts they cause on biodiversity,but also because they enhance the accumulation of high amounts of fuel load,increasing the risk of forest fires.However,in some areas of the country,such as the Alentejo(South of Portugal),the scarcity of water did not allow,until now,the dispersion and rapid growth of some of these species,namely Robinia pseudoacacia,which has always remained under control,and it was never a real problem.However,with the growth of intensive farming practices,associated with vineyards,olive groves and almond trees,water and nutrients became available,enabling this species to grow and disperse.This communication presents an observation of several sets of R.pseudoacacia specimens growing with different agricultural holdings,raising the hypothesis that intensive farming practices may,in the short term,contribute to the dispersion of invasive species in regions where they were not a problem,if the situations reported are not followed up and studies are carried out to confirm the observations described.

Invasive Species Control Based on a Cooperative Game

We develop a long-term dynamic model for controlling invasive species using the theory of cooperative games. The model is applied to control of invasive buffelgrass in the Arizona desert, which directly competes with indigenous species and can increase wildfire risk. Interest groups care about damages to three threatened resources: saguaro, cactus, riparian vegetation, and buildings. The model optimally allocates labor and a budget to protect these resources by controlling the buffelgrass population over a multi-period planning horizon. The solution is based on computing the Shapley values for the interest groups. A homeowner strategy of creating defensible space around structures to protect against wildfire affords less protection to the other resources. A similar result holds for protection of saguaros, which are also spatially concentrated. Under the optimal solution, groups caring about spatially-dispersed, riparian vegetation would compensate homeowners and groups caring about saguaros for a reallocation of resources toward greater protection of dispersed vegetation. Results highlight the importance of the spatial configuration of players and the resources they wish to protect in invasive species control problems.

An unprotected vulnerable relict subtropical conifer-Keteleeria evelyniana: Its forests, populations, growth and endangerment by invasive alien plant species in China

Relict subtropical coniferous forests in China face severe fragmentation,resulting in declining populations,and some are under significant threat from invasive alien species.Despite the crucial importance of understanding forest dynamics,knowledge gaps persist,particularly regarding the impact of invasive plants on vulnerable natives like Keteleeria evelyniana.In this study,we investigated the impact of invasive plants on the regeneration of forests dominated by K.evelyniana,a subtropical relict species in southwestern China.For this purpose,we characterized forest dynamics of 160 forest plots featuring K.evelyniana as the primary dominant species and determined whether the presence of invasive plants was correlated with regeneration of K.evelyniana.We identified four distinct forest types in which K.evelyniana was dominant.We found that radial growth of K.evelyniana trees is faster in younger ageclasses today than it was for older trees at the same age.The population structure of K.evelyniana in each forest type exhibited a multimodal age-class distribution.However,three forest types lacked established saplings younger than 10 years old,a situation attributed to the dense coverage of the invasive alien Ageratina adenophora.This invasive species resulted in a reduction of understory species diversity.Additionally,our analysis uncovered a significant negative correlation in phylogenetic relatedness(net relatedness index)between native and invasive alien plant species in eastern Yunnan.This suggests closely related invasive species face heightened competition,hindering successful invasion.Taken together,our findings indicate that successful establishment and habitat restoration of K.evelyniana seedling/saplings require effective measures to control invasive plants.

Neocosmopolitan distributions of invertebrate aquatic invasive species due to euryhaline geographic history and human-mediated dispersal:Ponto-Caspian versus other geographic origins

Background:Aquatic invertebrate species that have broad salinity tolerances may be pre-adapted for invasion success and biogeographic distributional range expansions,facilitated by human-mediated dispersal(HMD),leading to a trend to become neocosmopolitan across many regions of the world.This pattern appears to characterize many Ponto-Caspian(P-C)aquatic invertebrates,which have a>100-year history as aquatic invasive species(AIS),spreading throughout much of Eurasia and for some,in North America and beyond.Our study compiles comparative salinity conditions and distributional data for AIS invertebrate species globally versus those originating from the P-C region,to test whether they statistically differ.Results:Our investigation discerns that a total of 1861 invertebrate AIS taxa have been recorded worldwide,with(A)70.5%exclusively living in the saline adaptive zone of brackish(0.5-30 ppt;A1)and/or marine waters(>30 ppt;A2),(B)20%in the freshwater adaptive zone alone(0-0.5 ppt),(C)7.5%being euryhaline(across both A and B),and(D)2%being semi-aquatic in either(D1)freshwater/terrestrial or(D2)saline/terrestrial environments.In contrast,our results indicate the following proportions for AIS invertebrates of P-C origins:(A)27%exclusively inhabit the saline adaptive zone,(B)25%are entirely freshwater,(C)45%are euryhaline,and(D)3%are semi-aquatic,significantly differing from the global pattern.Euryhaline AIS native to the P-C region thus markedly outnumber(45%)those originating from other regions(7.5%),likely pre-adapting them for widespread establishment in harbors,estuaries,and coastal areas.Moreover,most P-C invertebrate AIS(70%)contain freshwater-tolerant populations(B+C),rendering them very successful invaders of inland water bodies.These broad salinity tolerances of P-C AIS underlie their tremendous invasion successes and growing neocosmopolitan distributions with HMD.Conclusions:An evolutionary and recent history of broad salinity tolerances of a large proportion of P-C invertebrates appears to enhance their ability to invade,establish,and spread in new regions,especially harbors,estuaries,and freshwaters,leading to their increasing neocosmopolitan distributions.This trend likely will continue-accelerating with climate change and increased global transportation-meriting worldwide conservation agency focus and cooperation,along with public education programs aimed to rapidly identify and circumvent new introductions and spread.

Nanogenerator-based bidirectional pressure sensor array and its demonstration in underwater invasive species detection

Lakes areas,which cause catastrophic damages in both commercial fishery and ecological systems.However,current assessment strategies may pose challenges for lake-wide abundance estimation and non-target anadromous species preservation.Here,we demonstrate an efficacious species-specific non-destructive sensing system based on porous ferroelectret nanogenerator for in-situ monitoring of lamprey spawning migration using their unique suction behavior.Simulations show that the porous structure enables a redistribution of surface charges under bidirectional deformations,which allows the detection of both positive and negative pressures.The quasi-piezoelectric effect is further validated by quantitative analysis in a wide pressure range of−50 to 60 kPa,providing detailed insights into transduction working principles.For reliable lamprey detection,a 4×4-pixel sensor array is developed and integrated with a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor(CMOS)based signal processing array thus constituting a sensing panel capable of recording oral suction patterns in an underwater environment.

Detecting the distribution of and public attitudes to charismatic alien species based on media coverage

Charismatic species are often reported by the media,providing information for detecting population status and public perception.To identify the number and distribution of free-living Black Swan(Cygnus atratus),a charismatic alien species in Chinese mainland and to detect the public and the media attitudes to the species,we analyzed the reports and emotional tendency from media coverage in 2000-2022 using manual reading,crawler extraction and latent Dirichlet allocation.A total of 6654 Black Swans were reported at 711 sites,including 147 individuals at 30 nature reserves.Successful breeding was reported at one-fourth of the total sites,including five nature reserves.The proportion of positive emotional tendency to Black Swans was overwhelming in the reports and was higher than that to alien species in general,suggesting that the public and the media are unaware of the risk of biological invasion.Effective management of invasive species requires the media clarifies the invasion risk of charismatic alien species.Promoting the unity between the harmfulness of abstract concept of alien species and the charisma of a specific alien species among the public help effective management.

Review on studies of Eupatorium adenophorum--an important invasive species in China

Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng. was introduced in Yunnan Province of China around 1940. Since then it has been spreading rapidly, particularly in the southern and southwestern parts of China and caused serious economic loss. The biological research and inte-grated control on E. adenophorum were carried out from 1980's in Yunnan Province. Together with other 15 invasive external species, the weed has been listed in the White Paper by The State Environmental Protection Administration of China. This paper briefly reviews the studies on natural distribution, biological character, ecological character, chemical component, hazard, potential application and the control of E. adenophorum. The research direction for this invasive external species in future was also discussed.

Species Exclusion Between an Invasive and an Indigenous Whitefly on Host Plants with Differential Levels of Suitability

The whitefly Bemisia tabaci has risen to international prominence since the 1980s due to the rapid spread around the globe by the two species B and Q within this species complex.The invasion of B has often been associated with the displacement of indigenous whiteflies.As the genetic structure of B.tabaci is diverse,more case studies of the competitive relationships between B and indigenous species of the whitefly species complex will help to understand further the mechanisms underlying the invasion of B.We examined the competitive interactions between B and ZHJ2,a widely distributed indigenous whitefly in Asia,on host plants with differential levels of suitability to the two species in the laboratory,and also tested the effect of insecticide application on the competitive relationships.Three species of plants were tested including cotton,a plant showing similar levels of suitability to both species,squash,a plant showing higher suitability to B than to ZHJ2,and kidney bean,a plant showing higher suitability to ZHJ2 than to B.In the case of no insecticide application,B displaced ZHJ2 on cotton,squash,and kidney bean by the 6th,3rd and 10th generation,respectively.With the application of imidacloprid,the displacement of ZHJ2 by B on cotton occurred by the 5th generation.As the displacement progressed,the proportion of B females increased,and the proportion of ZHJ2 females decreased on cotton and squash.In contrast,on kidney bean the proportion of B females remained unchanged while that of ZHJ2 increased.These results show the strong capacity of the invasive B to displace ZHJ2,and indicate that host plants with differential levels of suitability to the two species may affect the speed but not the trend of displacement and insecticide application may accelerate the process of displacement.

Evolution of germination strategy in the invasive species Ulex europaeus

Aims The study of the adaptive potential of the germination patterns of invading species enables us to identify some traits linked with their capacity to colonize new sites,and to gain a better understanding of their area of distribution.The aim of this study is to determine the germination pattern of Ulex europaeus,a cosmopolitan invasive species,in relation to temperature and to explore its potential evolu-tion and invasiveness in a tropical region,following its introduction from Europe.Methods We studied the germination pattern of U.europaeus(the com-mon gorse)to test both physical dormancy and germination capacity within the range of temperatures found in the native and invasive regions.To understand its germination pattern and its evolution,the rate and the speed of germination,as well as the percentage of seeds that became mouldy during the experi-ment,have been compared between a native habitat,France and a habitat into which it has been introduced,the tropical island of La Reunion.Important Findings The results show that gorse seeds germinate in large quantities,pos-sess the ability to germinate under a wide range of temperatures and they confirm the physical dormancy of the seeds(caused by seed coat impermeability).The decrease in germination from 25℃ upwards,coupled with an increase in the rate of moulding help to explain its restricted distribution at altitude in tropical environments.For scari-fied seeds,we have not detected any difference between the two regions,neither in the percentage of germinated seeds,nor in the per-centage of mouldy seeds.However,seeds from Reunion germinate faster at 20℃ than seeds from France and a greater number of seeds from Reunion are able to germinate without scarification(10-60%for Reunion versus 0-10%for France).These results suggest that while preserving the advantages of the native habitat,in Reunion gorse develops a strategy which favours the rapid occupation of new sites.

Potential distributional shifts in North America of allelopathic invasive plant species under climate change models

Predictive studies play a crucial role in the study of biological invasions of terrestrial plants under possible climate change scenarios.Invasive species are recognized for their ability to modify soil microbial communities and influence ecosystem dynamics.Here,we focused on six species of allelopathic flowering plants-Ailanthus altissima,Casuarina equisetifolia,Centaurea stoebe ssp.micranthos,Dioscorea bulbifera,Lantana camara,and Schinus terebinthifolia-Xhat are invasive in North America and examined their potential to spread further during projected climate change.We used Species Distribution Models(SDMs)to predict future suitable areas for these species in North America under several proposed future climate models.ENMEval and Maxent were used to develop SDMs,estimate current distributions,and predict future areas of suitable climate for each species.Areas with the greatest predicted suitable climate in the future include the northeastern and the coastal northwestern regions of North America.Range size estimations demonstrate the possibility of extreme range loss for these invasives in the southeastern United States,while new areas may become suitable in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada.These findings show an overall northward shift of suitable climate during the next few decades,given projected changes in temperature and precipitation.Our results can be utilized to analyze potential shifts in the distribution of these invasive species and may aid in the development of conservation and management plans to target and control dissemination in areas at higher risk for potential future invasion by these allelopathic species.

Climate change and invasive species:double jeopardy

Two of the key drivers of biodiversity loss today are climate change and invasive species.Climate change is already having a measurable impact on species distributions,reproduction and behavior,and all evidence suggests that things will get worse even if we act tomorrow to mitigate any future increases in greenhouse gas emissions:temperature will increase,precipitation will change,sea level will rise and ocean chemistry will change.At the same time,biological invasions remain an important threat to biodiversity,causing species loss,changes in distribution and habitat degradation.Acting together,the impacts of each of these drivers of change are compounded and interactions between these two threats present even greater challenges to field conservationists as well as policymakers.Similarly,the social and economic impacts of climate change and invasive species,already substantial,will be magnified.Awareness of the links between the two should underpin all biodiversity management planning and policy.

Tropical dendrochronology applied to invasive tree species in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

The Atlantic Forest is one of the largest and most biodiverse rainforests of South America but anthropogenic activities are drastically changing these landscapes.The invasion of alien or exotic species is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity.There are few studies of invasive species in tropical Brazilian ecosystems.This research examines growth and ecological aspects of Syzygium cumini and Clitoria fairchildiana,two invasive tree species in the Pedra Branca State Park,an Atlantic Forest remnant in southeastern Brazil.Both species were successfully dated,indicating an average age of 58 and 31 years,respectively.A positive relationship between growth and precipitation of the previous growing season suggests an ecological adaptive strategy,which could be facilitating their invasion into the environment.Cumulative growth diameter curves indicate slow and fast growth rates for S.cumini and C.fairchildiana,respectively.Growth release episodes detected in the tree rings indicate increased anthropogenic disturbances over the last 50 years.

Soil biotic and abiotic conditions negate invasive species performance in native habitat

Background:Most studies on plant invasion consider the enemy release hypothesis when analyzing native habitats.However,the lower performance of invasive species in the native habitats can be the result of unfavorable soil conditions in the native habitats.While soil biotic and abiotic factors have a potential to restrict the growth of invasive species in their native habitats,our understanding of belowground environment of invasive species in their native habitats is very limited.In this study,we analyzed soil characteristics associated with an exotic invasive plant,Old World Climbing Fern(Lygodium microphyllum),in its native habitat in Australia and the recipient habitat in South Florida.Rhizosphere soil samples from both habitats were analyzed for soil physical,chemical and biological characteristics.Results:Soil characteristics in the recipient habitats were significantly different compared to those in the native habitats.Soil samples from the native habitat had low soil pH,and high concentrations of elements such as aluminum and zinc which are phytotoxic in acidic soil environments.Additionally,mycorrhizal fungi spores were more diverse in the recipient habitat in Florida compared to the native habitat in Australia.Conclusion:Overall,our results indicate that growth of an invasive plant in its native habitats could be restricted by the toxic effects associated with strong soil acidity.Results from this study indicate that invasive plants not only escape from their natural herbivores but also from toxic soil environment in their native habitats.

Effects of Ecological Restoration of Mangrove Wetlands Using Native Mangrove Species to Replace Spartina alterniflora: A Case Study in Southern China

Within the expanse of China’s coastline, the invasive alien cordgrass species Spartina alterniflora has caused profound nationwide damage and has emerged as a critical factor contributing to the degradation of mangrove wetlands, especially in the study area in Beihai, Guangxi. However, current treatments for S. alterniflora remain less effective and limited research focuses on the preliminary changes after artificial plantation. A comprehensive approach combining physical interventions with biological control measures has been employed to eradicate smooth cordgrass and facilitate the restoration of native mangrove wetlands. The study involved the periodic monitoring of the growth conditions of mangroves and the biodiversity of avian and benthic organisms, conducted at three to four-month intervals following the artificial plantation with one-year-old seedlings and propagules of native mangrove species Rhizophora stylosa. Results indicated that through the allometric equation, the above-ground biomass of planted seedlings had a ~20 g increase in average but the growth conditions were not significant over an eight-month period. High percentage of important avian species underlined the potential of the study site to serve as a worthwhile habitat and notable seasonal variations were observed in the biodiversity of bird species. Biodiversity indices of bird and benthos species also followed a similar fluctuation and reached a peak in April 2023. This research underscores the initial lack of distinct improvements during the early stages of the ecological restoration project, thorough maintenance, long-term monitoring, holistic considerations on a larger scale would be imperative for ongoing projects in the future.

Treatment of Invasive Marine Species on Board by Using Micro-gap Discharge Plasma

A pilot-scale experiment of 20t/h for the treatment of ship＇s ballast water is reported in this paper. When the concentration of the dissolved OH. was 0.68 mg/L during the experiment, the rate of destroying bacteria, mono-algae, protozoan reached 100% within 2.67 s. The effect of hydroxyl radicals on biochemical processes was also studied. The attenuation rate of photosynthesis pigment was 100%. And the main reason for the cells＇ death was the strong destruction of the monose, amylose, protein, DNA and RNA in the cells. As an advanced oxidation method, the procedure can destroy invasive marine species when a ship is in the process of discharging its ballast water.

InvasionDB: A genome and gene database of invasive alien species

Invasive alien species(IAS) are species whose introduction to areas outside of their native range cause harm to economics, biodiversity, and the environment. Understanding the genetic basis of invasiveness is critical for preventing invasion by an alien species and managing IAS with eco-friendly control methods. In addition, uncovering the genomic features of IAS is essential for accurately predicting invasiveness. However, even though increasing efforts have been devoted to sequencing the genomes of IAS, there is still not an integrated genome database for the invasive biology community. Here, we first determined a list of invasive plants and animals by mining references and databases. Then, we retrieved the genomic and gene data of these IAS, and constructed a database, Invasion DB. Invasion DB encompasses 131 IAS genomes, 76 annotated IAS assemblies, and links these data to conventional functions such as searching for gene coding sequences and Pfam, KEGG, NR annotations, BLAST server, JBrowse, and downloads services. Next, we analyzed 19 invasivenessrelated gene families which confer invasiveness in insects. To study the roles of noncoding RNA in invasiveness, we also annotated 135 494 mi RNAs, 89 294 r RNAs, and 2 671 941 t RNAs from these IAS. In summary, Invasion DB is useful for studying the invasiveness at the genomic level, and thus helps to develop novel management strategies to control IAS.

Uses of Invasive Alien Plant Species in Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary of Bangladesh

An exploratory survey was conducted on the uses and role of invasive alien species(IAS) to local livelihoods in the Rema-Kalenga Wildlife Sanctuary in the northeastern hilly region of Bangladesh.Vegetation was sampled in 50 quadrates,each 10 m×10 m,and 25 line transects,each 50 m×20 m,through a combination of random and systematic sampling.Group discussions were also arranged with fifty local inhabitants(17 % of the total inhabitants) to learn the various uses of IAS.A total of 17 alien plant species belonging to 10 different families,of which Leguminosae constitutes the highest number(5 species),include tree(53%) followed by herb(12%),shrub(12%) and others(weed,climber and palm).The majority of the identified species were found to be used for fuel,followed by timber production,medicinal or curative uses,fodder,and many others.In addition to providing various forest products,alien tree species planted in forest plantation help provide many vital ecosystem services such as soil amelioration through nitrogen fixation.It is true that the alien species have some negative impacts on local ecosystems,and not all of them are harmful.Therefore,a national programme must be initiated to distinguish the harmful from the harmless species and to identify the uses and impacts of the former and latter.