Invaded : the biological invasion of South Africa

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Title:

Invaded : the biological invasion of South Africa

Author:

Joubert, Leonie S. (Leonie Skene), 1972-

ISBN:

9781868144785

Personal Author:

Joubert, Leonie S. (Leonie Skene), 1972-

Publication Information:

Johannesburg : Wits University Press, 2009.

Physical Description:

265 p. : col. ill., col. map ; 24 cm.

Contents:

Shrinking planet Earth: travel and conquest on the road to globalisation -- A little Europe in the Cape: the Cape floral kingdom and its plant invaders (mostly silky hakea, cluster pine and long-leaved wattle) -- Stealing South Africa's precious water: the threat of woody tree invaders (wattle, pine, eucalyptus, mesquite and lantana) -- Troublemakers in the big blue: mussels, oysters and crabs -- Armies from the new world: Argentine (sugar) ant -- Winged incursions: common starlings, common mynahs, house sparrows, house crows, feral pigeons, the mallard duck and the spread of indigenous species -- The devil weed and the dinosaur doppelgänger: triffid weed and its impact on the Nile crocodile -- Flowers of the waysides and wastelands: road and railway verges and power-line servitudes -- Glades of grass: perennial and annual grass invaders -- The invisible sounder: Eurasian wild pigs -- The sweet-toothed predator in the winelands: the European or yellow jacket wasp -- The 'Capensis' calamity: Cape and African honeybees and the painted reed frog -- Our polluted waterways: predatory fish (trout, bass and sharptooth catfish) and invasive plants (hydrilla and water hyacinth) -- A tale of cats and mice: Marion, Prince Edward and Gough Islands -- Blueprint of a well-nourished world: genetically modified crops and global food security -- Staging a defence: strategies to contain invasion -- A biological diaspora: South Africa's weedy exports.

Subject Term:

Biological invasions -- South Africa.

Invasive plants -- South Africa.

Marine biological invasions -- South Africa.

Introduced organisms.

Added Author:

Bosch, Rodger.

Copies:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Item Barcode	Shelf Number	Copy	Status
Searching... 1:IIEMSA	1:GEN-BOOK	33168025431400	577.180968 J86.I 2009	1	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

Invaded is a story about pollution...but not the more commonly reported oil spills, litter or filthy smoke-stacks. ""Invaded"" is about biological pollution - the plants and animals that have spread around the globe on the back of human movement, those that have traversed the boundaries of natural habitats and have begun to erode their new adopted environment. In telling the story of biological pollution, Leonie Joubert documents the grave consequences of humankind's intended and unintended introduction of alien species into South Africa. While some rivers have lost their natural fish populations, the west coast is choked over with mussels from a far-off country; the Cape Floral Kingdom's rare plants have come under increasing threat; sensitive renosterveld has been reduced to a few isolated islands of resistance; dams and lakes have been taken over by an umbrella of aquatic plants; and water is being consumed voraciously by thirsty alien trees. Working in close collaboration with the Centre for Invasion Biology at Stellenbosch University, Leonie Joubert brings the general reader a scientifically sound yet accessible and important book. ""Invaded"" is, however, not a story of despair. Instead, it encourages scientists, citizens and policy-makers to continue with their efforts to contain and eradicate invasive alien species. It is a book for the guardians of the South African environment.