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Originally Posted by Chas  I think you are not quite getting the point Aeshna, it isnt all about any damage caused or taking nest sites from other hole nesters etc. The fact is, they are not native to the UK and they are not here naturally and their presence here has changed the face of our natural environment. There is now a generation of people who have grown up with them and you just take their presence for granted as though it were a normal thing and even enjoy seeing them. All the while we have young educated people like yourself missing this point we don't stand a chance of putting things back the way it should be. You are articulate and well-read so why wouldn't all your generation agree with you you make a strong case. This distresses me more than I can put into words. |
I do get the point, but I don't necessarily agree with you. No they aren't native + shouldn't have been released but fauna + flora have been introduced by man since the human race arrived here. Some of the rarer introduced plants even have biodiversity action plans to conserve them! Yes some alien plants have caused great problems, eg. Rhododendron ponticum, Himalayan Balsam, but the vast majority are relatively benign; it's been estimated only 1 in 1000 exotic species that naturalise cause major problems.
Millions of non-native Pheasants are legally released annually + possibly impact on invertebrates, but because this is big money is forgotten. I'm very aware of some of the global problems that invasives have caused but we will never have a pure "British" fauna/flora. If we eliminated Rabbits some farmers might be happy but our biodiversity would suffer.
Living around London I see a large number of exotica + yet the place is richer than much sterile countryside around the country with both native + exotic species.
We will never agree on this, but our own species is by far the greatest threat to native species!