Read more about the article Miniature Guttural Toads on Mauritius and Réunion stun researchers
Guttural Toads, native to mainland Africa, were deliberately introduced from Durban to Mauritius in 1922 in an attempt to biocontrol the cane beetle, and from there moved to Réunion in 1927 as a biocontrol of malarial carrying mosquitoes. Photo credit: James Baxter-Gilbert

Miniature Guttural Toads on Mauritius and Réunion stun researchers

Researchers from the DSI/NRF Centre for Invasion Biology at Stellenbosch University have found that, scarcely a hundred years after Guttural Toads were introduced to the islands of Mauritius and Réunion, their overall body size has been reduced by up to a third compared to their counterparts in South Africa.

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Read more about the article Unscrambling the egg: resolving the introduction history for Silver wattle
Silver wattle (Acacia dealbata) invading along a river in Chile. (Photo credit: A. Pauchard)

Unscrambling the egg: resolving the introduction history for Silver wattle

Researchers at the Centre for Invasion Biology (C·I·B) at Stellenbosch University, found that the introduction histories of the globally important invasive tree Silver wattle (Acacia dealbata) are complex and cannot be generalized.

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Read more about the article Invasive rodents widely traded in the pet trade industry in Gauteng Province
Photograph credit: Shivambu N

Invasive rodents widely traded in the pet trade industry in Gauteng Province

The brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the house mouse (Mus musculus) are some of the world’s worst invasive rodent species. They are known to spread zoonotic diseases, damage crops and  household items, outcompete native species for food, and prey on some bird species.

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Read more about the article The lesser of two weevils? How insect thermal traits can help to understand biocontrol success and failure
Neochetina eichhorniae - outstanding in its field. Photo credit: Centre for Biological Control

The lesser of two weevils? How insect thermal traits can help to understand biocontrol success and failure

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is a widespread invasive species impacting a range of ecosystem services in South Africa, especially water quality and availability. To better control this aquatic weed, several biocontrol agents have been released – unfortunately with mixed success.

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