Welcome to our blog about invasive species week!
There are loads of topics to run through below which will give you an insight into invasive non native species, as well as things you can do to help!
So, keep reading for all of the interesting posts we have in store for you...
What are invasive non-native species (INNS)?
Invasive non native species are plants/animals/pathogens that have been moved from their ‘native range’ to somewhere they normally wouldn’t be. Sometimes they are released deliberately, but sometimes it can be by accident on someone’s clothes, on transport such as boats, shipping containers etc. To prevent more invasive species from coming into the country, the UK have a biosecurity protocol.
It’s important to remember that not all species that are brought to the UK are invasive, many of the species that are here happily coexist with our native species such as Horse Chestnut Trees and Peonies which become naturalised.
However, some species that are brought here do cause problems. There are currently nearly 200 invasive species within the UK! Each bringing their own challenges to either the economy or the environment. Although there are quite a few invasive species within the Tees catchment, we try to focus on the ones that cause the most problems such as Japanese knotweed, Himalayan balsam and Giant hogweed. You can find out more about our invasive non-native species projects on our website here: https://www.teesriverstrust.org/tophog
How are they spread?
INNS species come here, either accidentally or deliberately for different reasons.
Accidentally: If you are out and about doing activities outdoors, invasive species could be on your clothes, car, equipment without you realising. An example of how easy this could be is if you went to an area to walk your dog, got
a seed from an invasive plant stuck to your welly or boot without realising and then went to another site to walk your dog and the seed established there.
This is especially important to Check, Clean and Dry if you do activities around rivers and other bodies of waters such as angling, dog walking, kayaking/paddleboarding.
Deliberately: Sometimes, non-native species are released deliberately, usually with the best intentions, but releasing them can cause more problems in the long run. An example of this is when someone puts fish or plants from their own garden, into a local pond thinking it will help the wildlife. When in reality, these places are not a natural home for ornamental fish, causing harm to the ecosystem. Not only can they outcompete native species for food, shelter, and other resources but they can also bring diseases and bacteria to waterways.
Knowing the how, is crucial in reducing the spread of invasive species.
Why are they a problem?
INNS are in places they shouldn’t normally be, this means that often they don’t have any natural predators leaving them spread to their hearts content.
Usually, INNS cause problems in one or more of three areas;
Economic: Japanese knotweed is an invasive plant species that causes structural problems to buildings, easily spread through the smallest fragment and difficult to control, the plant can even grow through concrete! Not only can it affect your chances of getting a mortgage on a house, but it is also estimated to cost the government £165 million annually just on Japanese knotweed alone.
Environmental: The biggest impact a lot of INNS have is causing environmental problems. Due to not having a predator here in the UK, a lot of species (plants and animals) take over, creating large monocultures that outcompete native species for light, space, and resources. As well as bringing disease; species such as American Signal Crayfish can spread crayfish disease that kills off native white clawed crayfish.
Health: You have probably seen many of our posts about giant hogweed. But this invasive plant is considered one of the most dangerous in Britain, causing burns on contact with skin from a toxic sap. This doesn’t just affect people but also dogs and other animals! It is a nasty plant!
Due to all these problems, one of our key goals on the Tees is to control, reduce and remove invasive species within the catchment to make the river a nicer, safer and more biodiverse area.
What is being done to prevent this?
We want to let you know what we are doing to prevent invasive species from taking over within our Tees Catchment!
Biosecurity Protocol: we are working with our counterparts within the North East (Tyne Rivers Trust, Tweed Forum, Wear Rivers Trust and Northumberland Rivers Trust) to provide a biosecurity protocol for the region, to see how we can work together to #preventthespread
Over the course of our Tees Operation Giant Hogweed Project (TOPHOG), we have trained up over 40 individuals in their PA1 and PA6AW qualification to combat giant hogweed! This has included community group members such as angling clubs to help make the river a safer place!
We have released 13 Himalayan balsam and 5 Japanese knotweed biocontrol sites as a long-term self-sustaining method to control them!
We also hope in the future to have a regional INNS project that will help us to control invasive species in the North East Region, so watch this space...
You can stay tuned with our ongoing work by liking, following and sharing our social media platforms.
What can I do?
Below are a few things that you can do:
1. Keep any boats, clothing, footwear and equipment used in water free of inv
asive non-native species – remember to Check Clean Dry after use.
2. Be Plant Wise and don't let your garden, pond, or aquarium plants enter the wild.
3. Take care of your pets, never release them or allow them to escape into the wild. It’s cruel and could harm other wildlife.
4. Look out for Asian hornet and other alert species and record your sightings. Read more on Asian hornet and how to report sightings, find free ID sheets for invasive non-native species.
5. If you enjoy being outside why not volunteer with Tees Rivers Trust working on invasive species management.
For more information, about INNS or the other work we do, check out our website here: https://www.teesriverstrust.org/
You can also find more information on the GB NNSS website here: https://www.nonnativespecies.org/what-can-i-do/invasive-species-week/