Beware the Burmese Pythons and Other Invasive Animal Species
Introduction Worse than that Then what DO you mean What's the big deal New species might be fun ALIENS HAVE INVADED You mean the ones with big heads skinny legs and three eyes You mean the ones with antennae and green skin It's not a big deal when native species stay in their natural habitats Even worse than that We're being invaded by invasive alien species animals that aren't native to our environment But they can be huge frouble in new places These aliens are destroying ecosystems all over the world
Yeah right Name one alien Lots Rabbits in Australia cause millions of dollars of damage to farmers crops Sure when there's one Yup Things are so bad that one Australian state has outlawed owning a pet rabbit unless you're a magician a circus act or a scientisf About 160 years ago a man imported 24 rabbits from England so he could hunt them Seventy years later the Australian rabbit population was 10 billion Rabbits When there are millions of rabbits taking over a whole country then it's a disaster They also contribute to soil erosion and compete with native animals for food and homes Wow That definitely was not a smart move But hey that's just one animal and one goofy guy Rabbits No way Rabbits are cute and cuddly Come on How much harm can a bunch of bunnies do Really How did all this start Oh yeah There are lots more
Nutria eyes can see underwater valves in nostrils and mouth close when underwater SAVE OUR WETLANDS Common names nutria coypu Scientific name Myocastor coypus large sharp teeth forelegs for digging out plant roots and burrows Size Body 43-63 cm 17-25 in long Tail 25-41 cm 10-16 in long Habitats Near ponds rivers lakes and wetlands such as marshes and swamps WARNING ARMED WITH TEETH AND DESTRUCTIVE Marshland destroyed by nutria If you spot this invasive animal species report it to your local Department of Fish and Wildlife 4 webbed toes on back feet soft dense underfur with long coarse outer hairs rounded ratlike tail Invasion Route INVASIVE NATIVE Sugarcane crops destroyed by nutria
Invasion of the Veggie Bingers When nutria were first brought to the United States from their native home in South America no one thought they could be harmful It was the 1880s and fur ranchers were planning to raise nutria to make fur coats But after a while fewer people were buying fur coats So ranchers released thousands of nutria into the wild Because nutria breed very quickly it didn't take long for those thousands to become millions millions with HUGE appetites Nutria eat These all look so nutria itious It's hard to choose 25 percent of their body weight in food every day That's like you eating 51 apples every day But hey what could be so bad Nutria are vegetarians after all The trouble is not only do they chomp on plant stems they also love roots and rhizomes underground plant stems Eating these totally destroys the chance of a plant ever growing back or reproducing And nutria aren't picky about their veggies either NUTRIA MENU Farmers Crops Marshland Plants rice sugarcane corn beets alfalfa wheat barley oats peanuts melons vegetables roots stems seedlings young trees leaves cattail rhizomes bulrush rhizomes cordgrass rhizomes Side Orders tree bark rushes grass AND THAT'S NOT ALL THE DAMAGE THEY DO
