100 of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species
100 of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species is a list of invasive species compiled by the Global Invasive Species Database in 2014.[1] The IUCN (ISSG), which maintains the list, acknowledges that it is "very difficult to identify 100 invasive species from around the world that really are 'worse' than any others."[1]
Criteria for inclusion[]
Two criteria were used in selecting items for the list:
- An invasive species' "serious impact on biological diversity and/or human activities" and
- That species' "illustration of important issues surrounding biological invasion"[1]
According to the ISSG, "only one species from each genus was selected."[1]
List of species[]
Species | Type | Common names | Notes[1] |
---|---|---|---|
Acacia mearnsii | shrub | Black wattle, Australian acacia | Invasive worldwide. Native to Australia. |
Acridotheres tristis | bird | Common myna, Calcutta myna, house myna, Indian myna, martin triste, talking myna | Invasive in Australia, Hawaii, and Fiji. Established and potentially invasive in parts of Europe. Native to South Asia. |
Aedes albopictus | insect | Asian tiger mosquito, forest day mosquito, tiger mosquito | Spread via the international tire trade. Native to tropical Asia. |
Anopheles quadrimaculatus | insect | Common malaria mosquito | Invasive in North America. |
Anoplolepis gracilipes | insect | Yellow crazy ant, crazy ant, gramang ant, long-legged ant, Maldive ant | Invasive in Australia, Hawaii and Indian Ocean islands. |
Anoplophora glabripennis | insect | Asian long-horned beetle, starry sky beetle | Invasive in North America and established and potentially invasive in parts of Europe. Native to East Asia. |
Aphanomyces astaci | protozoan | Crayfish plague | Invasive in Europe. Native to North America. |
Ardisia elliptica | tree | Shoebutton Ardisia | Invasive in tropical Australia, South Florida, the Caribbean and many Pacific and Indian Ocean islands. Native to South and Southeast Asia. |
Arundo donax | grass | Giant cane, arundo grass, bamboo reed, cane, cow cane, donax cane, giant reed, reedgrass, river cane, Spanish cane, Spanish reed, wild cane | Invasive in California. Invasive in New Zealand. |
Asterias amurensis | echinoderm | Northern Pacific seastar, flatbottom seastar, Japanese seastar, Japanese starfish, North Pacific seastar, purple-orange seastar | Invasive in the southern coasts of Australia. Native to far north Pacific Ocean coasts. |
Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) | virus | Banana bunchy top disease, BBTD, abaca bunchy top virus, BBTV, bunchy top, bunchy top virus | Invasive worldwide. |
Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis | fungus | "Bd," chytrid frog fungi, chytridiomycosis, frog chytrid fungus | Invasive in Australia, New Zealand, and Panama. |
Bemisia tabaci | insect | Cotton whitefly, sweet potato whitefly, sweetpotato whitefly | Invasive worldwide. |
Boiga irregularis | reptile | Brown catsnake, brown tree snake, brown treesnake | Invasive in Guam. Native to Wallacea, New Guinea, Melanesia, and northern and eastern Australia. |
Bufo marinus = Rhinella marina | amphibian | Cane toad, bufo toad, bullfrog, giant American toad, giant neotropical toad, giant toad, marine toad, Suriname toad | Invasive in Australia, Melanesia, the Pacific, Philippines, Taiwan, and the West Indies. Native to South America and Central America. |
Capra hircus | mammal | Goat, feral goat | Invasive worldwide. See also feral goats in Australia. |
Carcinus maenas | crustacean | European green crab, European shore crab, green crab, shore crab | Invasive in North America, Australia, parts of South America and South Africa. Native to Europe and northern Africa. |
Caulerpa taxifolia | alga | Killer Alga(e) | Invasive in the Mediterranean Sea. Native to the Indian Ocean. |
Cecropia peltata | tree | Faux-ricin, pumpwood, trumpet tree, snakewood | Invasive in Malaysia, Africa, and Pacific Islands. Native to tropical Central and South America. |
Cercopagis pengoi | crustacean | Fishhook waterflea | Invasive in Eastern Europe and in the Baltic Sea. Native to the Ponto-Aralo-Caspian basin. |
Cervus elaphus | mammal | Red deer, deer, elk,[n 1] European red deer | Invasive in South America, New Zealand, and Australia. Native to Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. |
Chromolaena odorata | herb | Siam weed, bitter bush, Christmas bush, devil weed, camfhur grass, common floss flower, jack in the bush, triffid | Invasive in tropical Asia, Africa, and the Pacific. Native to South America and Central America. |
Cinara cupressi | insect | Cypress aphid | Invasive worldwide. |
Cinchona pubescens | tree | Red cinchona, quina | Invasive in Hawaii, the Galapagos Islands and Tahiti. Native to Central and South America. |
Clarias batrachus | fish | Walking catfish, clarias catfish, climbing perch, freshwater catfish, Thailand catfish | Invasive in North America. Native to Southeast Asia. |
Clidemia hirta | shrub | Koster's curse, faux vatouk, soap bush, soapbush | Invasive in Hawaii, Indian Ocean islands (Seychelles), peninsular Malaysia, and parts of Micronesia (Palau). |
Coptotermes formosanus | insect | Formosa termite, Formosan subterranean termite | Invasive in South Africa, Hawaii, and the United States mainland. Native to southern Japan, Taiwan and South China. |
Cryphonectria parasitica | fungus | Chestnut blight | Invasive in North America. Native to East and Southeast Asia |
Cyprinus carpio | fish | Common carp, European carp, fancy carp, feral carp, German carp, grass carp, Japanese domesticated carp, king carp, koi, koi carp, leather carp, mirror carp, Oriental carp, scale carp, wild carp | Invasive worldwide. |
Dreissena polymorpha | mollusc | Eurasian zebra mussel, wandering mussel, zebra mussel | Invasive in North America and Western Europe. Native to Eastern Europe. |
Eichhornia crassipes | aquatic plant | Water hyacinth, floating water hyacinth, water orchid | Invasive worldwide. Native to South America. |
Eleutherodactylus coqui | amphibian | Caribbean tree frog, common coqui, coqui, Puerto Rican treefrog | Invasive in Hawaii, Virgin Islands, Dominican Republic, and Florida. Native to Puerto Rico. |
Eriocheir sinensis | crustacean | Chinese mitten crab, big sluice crab, Chinese freshwater edible crab, Chinese river crab, Shanghai hairy crab | Invasive in Europe and North America. Native to East Asia. |
Euglandina rosea | mollusc | Cannibal snail, rosy wolf snail | Invasive in Indian and Pacific Ocean islands. Native to the southeastern United States. |
Euphorbia esula | herb | Leafy spurge, green spurge, spurge, wolf's milk | Invasive worldwide. Native to Europe and temperate Asia. |
Felis catus | mammal | Cat, domestic cat, feral cat, house cat | Invasive worldwide. |
Gambusia affinis | fish | Mosquitofish, guayacon mosquito, live-bearing tooth-carp, mosquito fish, pez mosquito, western mosquitofish | Invasive worldwide. Native to the fresh waters of the eastern and southern United States. |
Hedychium gardnerianum | herb | Ginger lily, kahila garland-lily, kahili ginger, wild ginger | Invasive in Hawaii, New Zealand. |
Herpestes javanicus | mammal | Small Asian mongoose, small Indian mongoose | Invasive in the northeast coast of South America, Croatia, Amami Island, Fiji, Hawaii, and the West Indies. Native to South and Southeast Asia. |
Hiptage benghalensis | shrub | Hiptage | Invasive in Australian rainforests, Mauritius, and Réunion. Native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. |
Imperata cylindrica | grass | Blady grass, cogon grass, Japanese bloodgrass, speargrass | Invasive worldwide, including the southeastern United States. Native to the Eastern Hemisphere. |
Lantana camara | shrub | Angel lips, big sage, blacksage, flowered sage, largeleaf lantana, prickly lantana, Spanish flag, West Indian Lantana, white sage, wild sage | Invasive worldwide. |
Lates niloticus | fish | Nile perch, African snook, Victoria perch | Invasive worldwide. Contributed to the decline of haplochromines in Lake Victoria. Native to Africa. |
Leucaena leucocephala | tree | White leadtree, false koa, faux mimosa, faux-acacia, horse/wild tamarind, jumbie bean, lead tree, wild mimosa, wild tamarind | Invasive throughout the hotter regions of the world. Native to Central America. |
Ligustrum robustum | shrub | Bora-bora, Ceylon privét, Sri Lankan privet, tree privet | Invasive in the Mascarene Archipelago (Mauritius and Réunion). Native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. |
Linepithema humile | insect | Argentine ant | Invasive worldwide. Native to South America. |
Lissachatina fulica | mollusc | Giant African land snail, giant African snail | Invasive in South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, the Pacific, Indian Ocean islands, the West Indies and the United States. Native to East Africa. |
Lymantria dispar | insect | Asian gypsy moth, gypsy moth | Invasive worldwide. |
Lythrum salicaria | herb | Purple loosestrife, purple lythrum, rainbow weed, spiked loosestrife | Invasive worldwide. |
Macaca fascicularis | mammal | Crab-eating macaque, long-tailed macaque, lion-tailed macaque. | Invasive in Mauritius, Palau (Angaur Island), Hong Kong and parts of Indonesia (Tinjil Island and Papua). Native to Southeast Asia. |
Melaleuca quinquenervia | tree | Paperbark teatree, bottle brush tree, broadleaf paperbark tree, broadleaf teatree, broad-leaved paperbark tree, five-veined paperbark tree, paper bark tree, punk tree, white bottlebrush tree | Invasive in Florida. Native to New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, and coastal eastern Australia. |
Miconia calvescens | tree | Bush currant, purple plague, velvet tree | Invasive in Pacific Islands, including Hawaii and Tahiti. Native to rainforests of tropical America. |
Micropterus salmoides | fish | Largemouth bass, American black bass, bass, black bass, green bass, green trout, largemouth black bass, northern largemouth bass, stormundet black bass | Invasive worldwide. Native to the eastern United States. |
Mikania micrantha | vine, climber | American rope, Chinese creeper, mile-a-minute weed | Invasive in the Pacific. Native to Central and South America. |
Mimosa pigra | shrub | Bashful plant, catclaw, catclaw mimosa, giant sensitive plant, giant trembling plant, mimosa | Invasive in Southeast Asia and Australia. Rice crop pest. Native to South America. |
Mnemiopsis leidyi | comb jelly | American comb jelly, comb jelly, comb jellyfish, sea gooseberry, sea walnut, Venus' girdle, warty comb jelly | Invasive in Southeast European waters, including the Black, Azov, Marmara, Aegean, and Caspian Seas. Native to temperate, subtropical estuaries along the Atlantic coast of North and South America. |
Mus musculus | mammal | Field mouse, house mouse, wood mouse | Invasive worldwide. Native to South Asia. |
Mustela erminea | mammal | Stoat, ermine, short-tailed weasel | Invasive in New Zealand. Native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. |
Myocastor coypus | mammal | Bewerrot, biberratte, coipù, coypu, nutria, ragondin | Invasive in North America, Europe, and Asia. Native to South America. |
Morella faya | shrub | Candleberry myrtle, fayatree, fire tree, firebush | Invasive in Hawaii, New Zealand, and Australia. native to the Azores, Madeira Islands, and the Canary Islands. |
Mytilus galloprovincialis | mollusc | Bay mussel, blue mussel, Mediterranean mussel | Invasive worldwide. Native to the Mediterranean Coast and the Black Sea. |
Oncorhynchus mykiss | fish | Rainbow trout, Baja California rainbow trout, coast angel trout, coast rainbow trout, coast range trout, hardhead, Kamchatka steelhead, Kamchatka trout, Kamloops, Kamloops trout, lord-fish, redband, redband trout, salmon trout, silver trout, steelhead, steelhead trout, summer salmon | Invasive worldwide. Native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. [2] |
Ophiostoma ulmi sensu lato | fungus | Dutch elm disease | Caused destructive pandemics in Europe and North America. Native to Asia. |
Opuntia stricta | shrub | Common prickly pear, Araluen pear, Australian pest pear, common pest pear, erect prickly pear, gayndah pear, sour prickly pear, spiny pest pear | Invasive in South Africa and Australia. Native to Central America. |
Oreochromis mossambicus | fish | Tilapia, common tilapia, Java tilapia, kurper bream, Mozambique cichlid, Mozambique mouth-breeder, Mozambique mouthbrooder, Mozambique tilapia | Invasive worldwide. |
Oryctolagus cuniculus | mammal | Rabbit, European rabbit | Invasive in Australia and New Zealand. Native to southwestern Europe and North Africa. |
Pheidole megacephala | insect | Big-headed ant, brown house-ant, coastal brown-ant, lion ant | Invasive in Australia, New Zealand, and Florida. Native to southern Africa. |
Phytophthora cinnamomi | fungus | Cinnamon fungus, green fruit rot, heart rot, phytophthora root rot, seedling blight, stem canker, wildflower dieback | |
Pinus pinaster | tree | Cluster pine, maritime pine | Invasive in South Africa and New Zealand. Native to the Mediterranean Basin. |
Plasmodium relictum | protozoan | Avian malaria | Highly invasive in Hawaii. |
Platydemus manokwari | flatworm | New Guinea flatworm, flatworm, snail-eating flatworm | Invasive in Pacific islands. Native to New Guinea. |
Pomacea canaliculata | mollusc | Apple snail, channeled apple snail, golden apple snail, golden kuhol, miracle snail | Invasive in Southeast Asia and Hawaii. Rice crop pest. Native to South America. |
Potamocorbula amurensis | mollusc | Amur river clam, Amur river corbula, Asian bivalve, Asian clam, brackish-water corbula, Chinese clam, marine clam | |
Prosopis glandulosa | tree | Honey mesquite, mesquite, Texas mesquite | |
Psidium cattleianum | shrub | Cattley guava, cherry guava, Chinese guava, purple strawberry guava, strawberry guava | Highly invasive in Mauritius and Hawaii. Native to Brazil. |
Pueraria montana var. lobata | vine | Japanese arrowroot, kudzu, kudzu vine | Native to Southeast and East Asia. Invasive in several other parts of the world, especially the southeastern United States. |
Pycnonotus cafer | bird | Red-vented bulbul | Invasive in many Pacific islands. Native to South and Southeast Asia |
Lithobates catesbeianus | amphibian | Bullfrog, North American bullfrog, American bullfrog | Invasive in Central and South America, western Europe, and East Asia. Native to eastern North America. |
Reynoutria japonica (syns. Fallopia japonica, Polygonum cuspidatum) | shrub | Crimson beauty, donkey rhubarb, fleeceflower, German sausage, Japanese bamboo, Japanese fleece flower, Japanese knotweed, Japanese polygonum, kontiki bamboo, Mexican-bamboo, peashooter plant, reynoutria fleece flower, sally rhubarb | Invasive in Europe, New Zealand, and North America. Native to Japan. |
Rattus rattus | mammal | Black rat, blue rat, bush rat, European house rat, roof rat, ship rat | Invasive worldwide. |
Rubus ellipticus | shrub | Asian wild raspberry, broad-leafed bramble, Ceylon blackberry, golden evergreen raspberry, Molucca berry, Molucca bramble, Molucca raspberry, robust blackberry, wild blackberry, wild raspberry, yellow Himalayan raspberry | Invasive in Hawaii. Native to South Asia. |
Salmo trutta | fish | Brown trout, blacktail, brook trout, galway sea trout, herling, lake trout, orange fin, orkney sea trout, salmon trout, sea trout, trout, whiting, whitling | Invasive worldwide. Native to Europe, Central Asia, and the Atlas Mountains of Africa. |
Salvinia molesta | floating aquatic fern | Giant salvinia | Invasive worldwide. |
Schinus terebinthifolius | tree | Brazilian holly, Brazilian pepper, Brazilian pepper tree, Christmas berry, Florida holly, Mexican pepper | Invasive in North America, Australia, the West Indies, Pacific Islands. Native to South America. |
Sciurus carolinensis | mammal | Gray squirrel, grey squirrel, Eastern gray squirrel | Introduced to the British Isles, Italy, and South Africa. Native to eastern North America. |
Solenopsis invicta | insect | Red imported fire ant, RIFA, Red Fire ant | Invasive in Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and the United States. Native to tropical South America. |
Spartina anglica | grass | Common cord grass, rice grass, Townsend's grass, Rice cord grass | Invasive in New Zealand. |
Spathodea campanulata | tree | African tulip tree, fireball, flame of the forest, fountain tree, Indian cedar, Santo Domingo mahogany | Invasive in Pacific Islands. Native to West Africa. |
Sphagneticola trilobata | herb | Creeping ox-eye, Singapore daisy, trailing daisy | Invasive worldwide. Native to Central America. |
Sturnus vulgaris | bird | Common starling, English starling, European starling | Native to Eurasia. Invasive in North America, Australia, and New Zealand. |
Sus scrofa | mammal | Wild boar, razorback | Invasive worldwide. Native to northern Africa, Asia and Europe. |
Tamarix ramosissima | shrub | Salt cedar | Invasive in the western United States and northern Mexico. Native to Eurasia. |
Trachemys scripta elegans | reptile | Red-eared slider, red-eared slider terrapin, slider turtle | Invasive worldwide. including Eastern Australia. Native to eastern North America. |
Trichosurus vulpecula | mammal | Brushtail possum | Invasive species in New Zealand. Native to Australia. |
Trogoderma granarium | insect | Khapra beetle | |
Ulex europaeus | shrub | Gorse, Irish furze | Invasive in New Zealand. Native to western Europe. |
Undaria pinnatifida | alga | Wakame, apron-ribbon vegetable, Asian kelp, Japanese kelp | Invasive in New Zealand, the United States, Western Europe, Argentina, Australia, and Mexico. Native to Japan. |
Vespula vulgaris | insect | Common wasp, common yellowjacket, European Wasp | Invasive in New Zealand and Australia, Chile, Argentina. Native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere (Palearctic). |
Vespula germanica | Insect | German wasp, European wasp, German yellow jacket. | Invasive in North America, Argentina, Australia, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa. Native to Europe, Nth Africa, temperate Asia. |
Vulpes vulpes | mammal | Red fox, black or cross fox | Invasive in Australia. Native to the Northern Hemisphere. |
Wasmannia auropunctata | insect | Cocoa tree-ant, electric ant, little fire ant, little introduced fire ant, little red fire ant, small fire ant, West Indian stinging ant | Invasive in the Pacific, the West Indies, and parts of Central Africa. Native to Central and South America. |
- Notes
References[]
- ^ a b c d e "100 of the World's Worst Invasive Alien Species". Global Invasive Species Database. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^ Behnke, Robert J. (2002). "Rainbow and Redband Trout". Trout and Salmon of North America. Tomelleri, Joseph R. (illustrator). New York: The Free Press. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-7432-2220-4.
Categories:
- 2014-related lists
- Lists of invasive species
- Lists of worsts