Reflection on Invasive Species

 Throughout the course of March and April, our class has been hard at work clearing certain species from areas within the Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge. On our first day of volunteering this species was the bamboo that was creeping into the woods from a nearby neighborhood. In every class since then, we have been cutting back Chinese privet from an area right by the bison enclosure. These efforts have opened my eyes to how real world conservation efforts often differ from what you might expect, and how the problems that threaten our natural areas are not always the most visible. When walking or driving by these areas, it would be easy to see nothing but green growth and assume the natural environment was thriving, but what is harder to see is the invasive species that can spread like wildfire and choke out indigenous species. Now when I am driving though just about anywhere in Fort Worth, I see this Chinese privet growing and can recognize it for the nuisance and danger to the native species that it is. It often reminds me of the spread of zebra mussels in Minnesota. Growing up, every time you launched a boat into a lake or took one out, you had to make sure your hull was thoroughly cleared of any sort of growth and the bilge tanks empty. This was to prevent the spread of zebra mussels, an invasive species, from lake to lake. When zebra mussels began spreading in the Lake my family often went to, it was finally clear why this conservation effort was so rigorous. In just a matter of a few years, they were rampant at some of the most popular beaches. Now, I don’t think I can count on two hands the number of times I have sliced the bottoms of my feet open on these small sharp pests. Zebra mussels, like privet, are hard to spot if you aren't looking for them, spreading silently under the surface of the water. Both of these examples illustrate how the fruits of conservation are not always easy to discern. People don’t always realize that some of the most invasive species can look pretty in your lawn or grow unchecked in the backgrounds of our natural areas. Perhaps better education on what each area's most threatening invasives and how to contribute to prevention efforts is needed in our public discourse. It makes me wonder how many other environmental changes we overlook simply because they happen slowly and silently.