Name of Species:
Armored Catfish
Impact on Environment:
 Eat algae, invertebrates,
detritus and some even eat
wood.
 Use up local resources
quickly
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Outcompete and reduce the
number of native species
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Lay more than 300 eggs at
a time
 Male guards the nest
 Eggs hatch within 4-20
days
 Hearty fish that can
withstand a wide range of
ecological conditions
 Can survive out of the
water for more than 30hrs.
Cost To Humans:
 Can lead to the collapse of
freshwater fisheries.
Name of Species:
Asian Tiger Mesquito
Impact on Environment:
 Breed in standing water so
can effect water clarity
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Males feed on plant juices
 Females take blood meals and
therefore can spread
diseases.
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Lays its eggs in the water
 Migrates via flight
 Fills niches left behind by
eradicated mosquitos of
other species
 More active in the day
 Eggs are capable of
overwintering
Cost To Humans:
 Can transfer diseases to
humans hosts
 Can transfer diseases to
livestock and pets
 Mosquito bites are a
nuisance and these
mosquitoes are very active
in the daytime when
humans are out and about
Name of Species:
Citrus Root Weevil
Impact on Environment:
 Adults cause leaf notching
damage when they emerge
to lay eggs
 Girdle the roots of plants
and prevent the plant from
absorbing proper nutrients
and water
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Because they can cause
such damage to plants,
they destroy the base of the
food chain and affect all
organisms reliant on the
plants.
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Female can lay up to 5000
eggs
 Infects a broad range of
plants
Cost To Humans:
 Damage citrus trees, sweet
potatoes, ornamental
plants, sugarcane, grasses,
peanut crops, corn and
other plant species.
 Known to feed on over 270
species of plants from 59
different families
Name of Species:
Feral Pig
Impact on Environment:
 Effect wildlife and plants as
well as domestic crops and
livestock.
 Disturb vegetation and soil
by rooting
 Compete with natives for
mast (the fruit of forest
trees)
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Compete for food sources
 Disturb plant succession
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Breed year round
 Can have 1-7 in a litter
Cost To Humans:
 Negatively effect crops and
livestock
 Nuisance animals
Name of Species:
Giant Hogweed
Impact on Environment:
 Quickly takes over habitats
 Out competes native plant
species
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Reduces the number of
native plants effecting the
base of the local food web
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Produce approximately
15000 seeds per flower
head
 Aggressive competitor
 Large size takes up space
 Grows rapidly
 Hard to eradicate due to
damaging sap
Cost To Humans:
 Dies back in the winter
which can lead to erosion of
the bare ground
 Sap causes skin damage
Name of Species:
Grass Carp
Impact on Environment:
 Easily outcompete native
species and take over novel
habitats
 Can consume 40-300% of
their weight per day in
plant material
 Expel about half of what
they eat as waste which can
cause algal blooms which
lower the water clarity and
dissolve oxygen content.
 Harbor parasites which local
species may not be
resistant to
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Remove large amounts of
plant materials from the
water daily
 Change the water clarity
and oxygen content
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Produce numerous eggs
 Rapid Growth
 Able to breed in large rivers
that flow through many
states so they can broaden
their range.
 Prodigious feeders
 Able to invade many
different types of water
habitats and consume
various food sources
Cost To Humans:
 Could possible destroy
fishing areas by destroying
native species and
ecosystems.
 May cause native species to
become extinct by passing
on parasites.
Name of Species:
Hydrilla
Impact on Environment:
 Large bunches of these
plants raise the water pH
and temperature and lower
the dissolved oxygen.
 Decrease in the number of
large fish
 Promotes mosquito habitats
 Clogs dams
Effect on Local Food Web:
 While increasing the
number of fish, large fish
become more rare.
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Hardy and tolerant plants
 Can grow up to an inch a
day
 Can grow in many places
such as lakes, rivers,
reservoirs, ponds and
ditches
Cost To Humans:
 Potentially affect power
generation by clogging
dams
 Take over hundreds of
acres of waterways
 Can block boats from
fishing areas
Name of Species:
Nutria
Impact on Environment:
 Destruction to semiaquatic
environments
 Destroy aquatic vegetation
Effect on Local Food Web:
 Outcompete native species
for aquatic vegetation thus
disrupting the base of the
local food web
Characteristics that Help It
Succeed:
 Breed year round
 Reach sexual maturity at
only 4 months of age
 Can have from 1-14 babies
at time
 Adapt well to a wide variety
of environmental conditions
and fill what here thought
to be unsuitable habitats
Cost To Humans:
 Destroy crops such as
sugarcane and rice
 Cause damage by
burrowing
 Gnaw on wood and
Styrofoam structures