THE PUBLIC is being asked to help the Irish Biodiversity Data Centre to help identify the number of alien species in the Republic by reporting sightings.
A programme called “Spot the Alien” was launched last evening and nature and garden lovers are being asked to report sightings of three invasive alien species which may have been seen in their area.
The centre has targeted the New Zealand flatworm, the harlequin ladybird and the distinctive red lily beetle in its programme.
Data centre schemes co-ordinator Colette O’Flynn said submissions can provide valuable data to help understand the level of invasion, distribution and spread of these species in Ireland.
“It is widely recognised that invasive species are one of the world’s greatest threats to biodiversity and have socio-economic impacts. Recent reports have shown the cost of alien invasive species in Europe is over € 12 billion per year and costs the British economy £1.7 billion per year.”
Ms O’Flynn added that the New Zealand flatworm kills our hard-working native earthworms in large quantities and the harlequin ladybird has been dubbed “the most invasive ladybird on Earth” and “the fastest spreading invasive insect in Europe”.
This ladybird is highly variable in looks but is larger than most of our native ladybirds, which it eats. It can winter in houses in the hundreds of thousands as it has done in England.
Ms O’Flynn said the distinctive red lily beetle attacks lilies and fritillary plants but is noticeable by its vibrant red with a black head, legs and antennae.
The New Zealand flatworm was fist recorded in Ireland in Belfast in the 1980s and has since spread rapidly southwards.
The Harlequin ladybird is found all over the country but to date, the red lily beetle has only been found in the Cork city area and in Belfast where it was first identified in 2002.
Ms O’Flynn said that having failed to prevent invasive species being introduced into Ireland, we must now detect their presence as a matter of urgency.
Heritage Council wildlife officer Cliona O’Brien said the data provided by public recording schemes was very valuable. “The importance of every record you submit should not be underestimated. I urge everyone to get involved in spotting these species and submitting their sighting to the invasive species database,” she said.
Sightings can be submitted to http://invasives.biodiversityireland.ie where more information on Spot the Alien is available. The public is also asked to submit photographs, if possible, to assist verification.
SEÁN Mac CONNELL, Agriculture Correspondent
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0826/1224303005281.html
Showing posts with label alien species. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alien species. Show all posts
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Thursday, December 2, 2010
That's a bit too much crunch in my salad: Woman finds live giant Egyptian grasshopper in her bag of greens
A Sussex woman's lunch almost became a Bushtucker Trial this week when she discovered a live giant grasshopper in a salad bag.
The likes of Alison Hammond and Kayla Collins got close to some creepy critters during Sunday's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get me Out Of Here! but an unnamed Brighton woman had a bigger shock after picking up a healthy lunch from a branch of Tesco in Lewes.
The unnamed shopper was about to sit down for lunch on the East Sussex coast when she found the three-inch insect alive and well among her bag of leaves.
The insect had survived a trip from Egypt in the salad bag before it gave the woman a surprise at the dining table.
Showing admirable calm under pressure - especially as her appetite had been undoubtedly spoiled - the woman passed on the creature to the RSPCA, who received the animal on condition of anonymity for the shopper.
The grasshopper - which the National History Museum has verified as Egyptian - has since been re-homed it at nearby Drusillas Zoo, where it was received by spider and insect expert Angela Hale earlier this month.
'To discover a grasshopper in this way is incredibly unusual,' she admitted. 'Although it may give someone a bit of a shock, these insects are completely harmless.
'The grasshopper is in excellent health and settling into her new home, where we hope she will be very happy.'
Ms Hale was able to identify that the grasshopper had made it to the south coast having travelled all the way from Egypt thanks to its distinctive vertically striped eyes, which are particular to this breed of insect.
The 6.5cm insect is believed to be a fully developed female, with a length more common to the fairer sex of the species, and fully developed wing span and colouration.
Ms Hale also received confirmation from the National History Museum that the bug was an Egyptian giant grasshopper, after the London institution viewed pictures of the insect.
A Tesco spokesman said that incidents such as these were 'extremely rare' and offered his apologies to the customer in question.
'All of our products go through quite a lot of processes before it reaches the customer,' he added.
'Incidents like this are extremely rare although an unpleasant surprise is something that can happen on very, very rare occasions
By Daily Mail Reporter
The likes of Alison Hammond and Kayla Collins got close to some creepy critters during Sunday's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get me Out Of Here! but an unnamed Brighton woman had a bigger shock after picking up a healthy lunch from a branch of Tesco in Lewes.
The unnamed shopper was about to sit down for lunch on the East Sussex coast when she found the three-inch insect alive and well among her bag of leaves.
The insect had survived a trip from Egypt in the salad bag before it gave the woman a surprise at the dining table.
Showing admirable calm under pressure - especially as her appetite had been undoubtedly spoiled - the woman passed on the creature to the RSPCA, who received the animal on condition of anonymity for the shopper.
The grasshopper - which the National History Museum has verified as Egyptian - has since been re-homed it at nearby Drusillas Zoo, where it was received by spider and insect expert Angela Hale earlier this month.
'To discover a grasshopper in this way is incredibly unusual,' she admitted. 'Although it may give someone a bit of a shock, these insects are completely harmless.
'The grasshopper is in excellent health and settling into her new home, where we hope she will be very happy.'
Ms Hale was able to identify that the grasshopper had made it to the south coast having travelled all the way from Egypt thanks to its distinctive vertically striped eyes, which are particular to this breed of insect.
The 6.5cm insect is believed to be a fully developed female, with a length more common to the fairer sex of the species, and fully developed wing span and colouration.
Ms Hale also received confirmation from the National History Museum that the bug was an Egyptian giant grasshopper, after the London institution viewed pictures of the insect.
A Tesco spokesman said that incidents such as these were 'extremely rare' and offered his apologies to the customer in question.
'All of our products go through quite a lot of processes before it reaches the customer,' he added.
'Incidents like this are extremely rare although an unpleasant surprise is something that can happen on very, very rare occasions
By Daily Mail Reporter
That's a bit too much crunch in my salad: Woman finds live giant Egyptian grasshopper in her bag of greens
A Sussex woman's lunch almost became a Bushtucker Trial this week when she discovered a live giant grasshopper in a salad bag.
The likes of Alison Hammond and Kayla Collins got close to some creepy critters during Sunday's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get me Out Of Here! but an unnamed Brighton woman had a bigger shock after picking up a healthy lunch from a branch of Tesco in Lewes.
The unnamed shopper was about to sit down for lunch on the East Sussex coast when she found the three-inch insect alive and well among her bag of leaves.
The insect had survived a trip from Egypt in the salad bag before it gave the woman a surprise at the dining table.
Showing admirable calm under pressure - especially as her appetite had been undoubtedly spoiled - the woman passed on the creature to the RSPCA, who received the animal on condition of anonymity for the shopper.
The grasshopper - which the National History Museum has verified as Egyptian - has since been re-homed it at nearby Drusillas Zoo, where it was received by spider and insect expert Angela Hale earlier this month.
'To discover a grasshopper in this way is incredibly unusual,' she admitted. 'Although it may give someone a bit of a shock, these insects are completely harmless.
'The grasshopper is in excellent health and settling into her new home, where we hope she will be very happy.'
Ms Hale was able to identify that the grasshopper had made it to the south coast having travelled all the way from Egypt thanks to its distinctive vertically striped eyes, which are particular to this breed of insect.
The 6.5cm insect is believed to be a fully developed female, with a length more common to the fairer sex of the species, and fully developed wing span and colouration.
Ms Hale also received confirmation from the National History Museum that the bug was an Egyptian giant grasshopper, after the London institution viewed pictures of the insect.
A Tesco spokesman said that incidents such as these were 'extremely rare' and offered his apologies to the customer in question.
'All of our products go through quite a lot of processes before it reaches the customer,' he added.
'Incidents like this are extremely rare although an unpleasant surprise is something that can happen on very, very rare occasions
By Daily Mail Reporter
The likes of Alison Hammond and Kayla Collins got close to some creepy critters during Sunday's episode of I'm A Celebrity... Get me Out Of Here! but an unnamed Brighton woman had a bigger shock after picking up a healthy lunch from a branch of Tesco in Lewes.
The unnamed shopper was about to sit down for lunch on the East Sussex coast when she found the three-inch insect alive and well among her bag of leaves.
The insect had survived a trip from Egypt in the salad bag before it gave the woman a surprise at the dining table.
Showing admirable calm under pressure - especially as her appetite had been undoubtedly spoiled - the woman passed on the creature to the RSPCA, who received the animal on condition of anonymity for the shopper.
The grasshopper - which the National History Museum has verified as Egyptian - has since been re-homed it at nearby Drusillas Zoo, where it was received by spider and insect expert Angela Hale earlier this month.
'To discover a grasshopper in this way is incredibly unusual,' she admitted. 'Although it may give someone a bit of a shock, these insects are completely harmless.
'The grasshopper is in excellent health and settling into her new home, where we hope she will be very happy.'
Ms Hale was able to identify that the grasshopper had made it to the south coast having travelled all the way from Egypt thanks to its distinctive vertically striped eyes, which are particular to this breed of insect.
The 6.5cm insect is believed to be a fully developed female, with a length more common to the fairer sex of the species, and fully developed wing span and colouration.
Ms Hale also received confirmation from the National History Museum that the bug was an Egyptian giant grasshopper, after the London institution viewed pictures of the insect.
A Tesco spokesman said that incidents such as these were 'extremely rare' and offered his apologies to the customer in question.
'All of our products go through quite a lot of processes before it reaches the customer,' he added.
'Incidents like this are extremely rare although an unpleasant surprise is something that can happen on very, very rare occasions
By Daily Mail Reporter
Monday, November 2, 2009
Alien spider species spotted
RIGHT: Photo by Matthew Field
Thursday, Oct 29, 2009
Staff Reporter
KOCHI: A brown widow spider belonging to the widow spider group was spotted at Thiruvalla recently.
It was an adult female spider. The spider collected by Manoj Thomas, a medical practitioner, was identified by Samson Davis and P.A. Sebastian, of the Spider Lab of the Sacred Heart College, Thevara.
The specimen is being kept at the lab of the college. The creature might have been accidentally introduced to the State and more research needs to be carried on the species, said Mr. Davis, who is also the head of the Zoology Department of the College.
Widow spiders are highly poisonous and the black widow spiders found in North America and West Indies are poisonous enough to kill human beings. Though the poison of the brown widow is supposed to be more toxic than that of the black widow, the dose of poison it can inject at a time is very little and has only localised action. The brown spider is not very aggressive, does not defend its web and bites are not common. Hence, one need not be afraid of this spider, said Mr. Davis. The colour intensity of brown widows ranges from light tan to dark brown.
They may also have a red broken stripe or a series of white spots along the top of the abdomen with parallel rows of black spots on either side of the stripe.
There is an orange hourglass mark on the underside of the abdomen. The head is usually dark brown. Legs are usually tanned and black banded, Mr. Davis said.
The spider lab of the college focuses mainly on taxonomical studies and also bio-control of agricultural pests.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/10/29/stories/2009102951290200.htm
Alien spider species spotted
RIGHT: Photo by Matthew FieldThursday, Oct 29, 2009
Staff Reporter
KOCHI: A brown widow spider belonging to the widow spider group was spotted at Thiruvalla recently.
It was an adult female spider. The spider collected by Manoj Thomas, a medical practitioner, was identified by Samson Davis and P.A. Sebastian, of the Spider Lab of the Sacred Heart College, Thevara.
The specimen is being kept at the lab of the college. The creature might have been accidentally introduced to the State and more research needs to be carried on the species, said Mr. Davis, who is also the head of the Zoology Department of the College.
Widow spiders are highly poisonous and the black widow spiders found in North America and West Indies are poisonous enough to kill human beings. Though the poison of the brown widow is supposed to be more toxic than that of the black widow, the dose of poison it can inject at a time is very little and has only localised action. The brown spider is not very aggressive, does not defend its web and bites are not common. Hence, one need not be afraid of this spider, said Mr. Davis. The colour intensity of brown widows ranges from light tan to dark brown.
They may also have a red broken stripe or a series of white spots along the top of the abdomen with parallel rows of black spots on either side of the stripe.
There is an orange hourglass mark on the underside of the abdomen. The head is usually dark brown. Legs are usually tanned and black banded, Mr. Davis said.
The spider lab of the college focuses mainly on taxonomical studies and also bio-control of agricultural pests.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/10/29/stories/2009102951290200.htm
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