Biological Pollutants

Question 1

Give an example of a biological pollutant

Answer 1

Non-native species or ‘invasive species’

Question 2

What does the Rio Convention (1992) regard as the greatest threat to biodiversity

Answer 2

‘invasive species’

Question 3

Give an example of a non-native fish species case study

Answer 3

Nile Perch in Lake Victoria

Question 4

What were the effects of the introduction of Nile Perch

Answer 4

Affected the diet composition of the Pied Kingfisher (Wanink et al., 1994).

Question 5

What is the difference between Non-Native and Invasive species?

Answer 5

Non native: has the potential to cause economic and environmental harm
Invasive: likely to cause economic and environmental harm

Question 6

Direct impacts of invasive species?

Answer 6

Diseases, predation, hybridisation, paratism, competition

Question 7

What are the economic impacts of invasive species

Answer 7

Market impacts and non-native impacts

Question 8

Pathways of invasive species?

Answer 8

British colonialism and Trade, science, climate?

Question 9

Give an example of marine pathways of invasive species

Answer 9

Ballast water and aquaculture escapes. Illegal stockings of such species.

Question 10

Best management of invasive species

Answer 10

Prevention

Question 11

Case study?

Answer 11

Sea Lamprey control and management. Destructive as they entered Lake Ontario during the mid-1800s. They inflicted significant economic and environmental damage.
Lampricide was the only option.

Question 12

What did Gurevitch and Padilla (2004) say?

Answer 12

Invasive species are profoundly altering ecosystems
Leading to large scale declines and extinctions of natives
However, are they solely to blame or is that too specific ?