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.

Comments Off on Miniature Guttural Toads on Mauritius and Réunion stun researchers

Bumper journal special issue on “Frameworks used in Invasion Science” from C·I·B workshop

In November 2019, the Centre for Invasion Biology (C·I·B) hosted an international workshop on “Frameworks used in Invasion Science”. Deliberations at the workshop and afterwards led to a bumper special issue of the journal NeoBiota which comprises 24 papers.

Comments Off on Bumper journal special issue on “Frameworks used in Invasion Science” from C·I·B workshop
Read more about the article Invasive plants are more phytochemically diverse than native counterparts
Triffid weed (Chromolaena odorata) - one of the invasive alien plants that pose severe ecological threats in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. (Photo credit: Llewellyn Foxcroft)

Invasive plants are more phytochemically diverse than native counterparts

When comparing three invasive alien plants (IAP) in South Africa to their native counterparts in the United States, a clear increase in phytochemical diversity in the invaded region was found, highlighting the role of secondary metabolites in plant invasions.

Comments Off on Invasive plants are more phytochemically diverse than native counterparts
Read more about the article Identifying invasion syndromes to improve our capacity of understanding and managing biological invasions
Framework explaining the concept of invasion syndromes

Identifying invasion syndromes to improve our capacity of understanding and managing biological invasions

For decades, invasion scientists have been trying to identify generalisations that can allow us to understand which species will become invasive in the future, where and how they will be introduced, which impacts they will have in the invaded areas, and how we can efficiently manage them.

Comments Off on Identifying invasion syndromes to improve our capacity of understanding and managing biological invasions

Where did the invasive Guttural Toads come from?

Guttural toads (Sclerophrys gutturalis) have been invasive in Mauritius and Reunion for nearly 100 years (since ~1922), and have been in Constantia (near Cape Town) for another 20 years, but where did those colonising toads come from?

Comments Off on Where did the invasive Guttural Toads come from?