The Aliens are coming! Aliens…large and small, in every shape and size. In fact, they’re already arrived, and they may be waiting for you in your backyard. These Alien Invaders aren’t the ones you may have seen on TV or in movies, but they are very real. Forget the little green men, and brace yourself for the invaders that have already arrived: The Attack of the Invasive Species.

An invasive species is a plant or animal that is not native to an ecosystem, spreads without bounds, and is capable of causing vast ecological damage. The Zebra Mussel, Kudzu, Purple Loosestrife, Fire Ant, Gypsy Moth, Emerald Ash Borer, Burmese Python, Nutria, Red Fox, Coqui Frog, Brown Tree Snake, Walking Catfi sh, Snakehead Fish, and yes, even the Asian Beetles in your windowsill are examples of invasive species.

So if they didn’t land in a UFO, how did these invaders get here? Naturally, humans bear most of the blame. Sometimes the intruders are imported into new a region intentionally. For example…Imagine you receive a call to Hawaii when you graduate. You’re cruising along in rented convertible with the top down, when a mongoose pokes its head out from the side of the road. The furry creature narrowly evades death as it sprints to the other side of the road, inches away from your tires. That’s nice, you think. A mongoose. A mongoose??!! Using your vast knowledge of ecology (thanks to the Bio Boys), you remember that mongooses (or are they mongeese…?) are not native to Hawaii. Hmm…sounds suspicious. Upon further investigation, you fi nd out that the mongoose was originally brought to Hawaii in the 1880s to control rats that were destroying the sugar cane crop. Unfortunately, the mongoose is diurnal (which, as the Bio Boys would tell you, means that it comes out during the day). Rats prefer to be nocturnal. Instead of solving the rat problem, people only succeeded in creating a mongoose problem. Oops! The exotic pet trade is another way invasive species fi nd their way into a new region. Others hitchhike in the ballast of ships (just ask the Zebra Mussel). Considering all of these things, it’s easy to see why these invaders are becoming such a large problem in our globalized society.

Invasive species are bad news because of how easily and quickly they can upset the balance of an ecosystem. They have no natural predators, so they reproduce and spread at an exponential rate. Take Kudzu for example, better known as The Vine That Ate The South. In the Southern United States, Kudzu is practically everywhere. According to some accounts, the leafy vine can grow up to a foot per day. Folklore holds that you should always close and lock your doors and windows at night, lest the Kudzu creep in and smother your children. As Kudzu grows and spreads, it chokes out native vegetation. Another outcome of the invaders is an upset of the ecological balance by altering existing food webs—the invader consumes native species, but has no natural predators of its own.

With all the damage that these invasive species are doing, it’s no wonder that they are being targeted so aggressively. Many programs are in place to control and prevent invasive species. The method used to stop them depends on the particular species that is being targeted. Some creatures are hunted or captured. Offi cials in Louisiana have been encouraging citizens to consider eating Nutria (an invasive rodent, originally of South America) as an inexpensive (read free, if you catch it yourself) lean meat. In other situations, natural predators are imported into the region to target the invader. Still others are targeted with specifi c chemical or biological agents that eliminate the invader, but are harmless to other species.

Invasive species are just one example of the effect that sin has on all creation. Because of man’s intervention, there have been many instances where invasive species upset the natural ecological balance. Invasive species are a serious threat to biodiversity, and could potentially cause the extinction of many threatened and endangered species. Although intentions are good, the results of man’s efforts often have unforeseen consequences. This is a result of the complexity of ecology, and of our incomplete understanding of it. Ever since the fall, all of creation has been affected by sin. Creation is in a state of degeneration—the effects of sin become more evident as time progresses, beginning with the Garden of Eden. The Passenger Pigeon, Dodo, and Great Auk are only a few examples of the damaging effects man has had on his environment in recent history. The effects of invasive species may very well play a large role in the future of human ecology. As Christians, we do remember that God wants to us to be good stewards of the world he has given us. At the same time, we also realize that the degeneration we see in the world is a result of sin, and will continue to the Last Day.

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