 The
sea lamprey is not a fish but a parasite.
It is very small (12-20cm and 8-13on though it can prove quite
a difficult to cope with. This parasite has always inhabited
the Great Lakes but only Lake Ontario. It is also native to the
St. Lawrence river and of course the ocean. Now it has been found
in almost every Great Lake. It has become a problem because of
its ability to drain the body fluids from its victims. It attacks
by latching on to its victims with its hundreds of sharp teeth
and their saliva will keep the wound open for weeks at a time
when eventually the victim would die. The sea lamprey preys only
on fish. There has been a way to control sea lamprey though some
scientists are worried that eventually the sea lamprey will become
immune to the poison. |
 The
bullfrog
is one of those nonnative species that you see every day. It
is not exactly harmful or scary, and it can't suck the body fluids
from an innocent fish but it is still nonnative and can be harmful
to juvenile western pond turtles. It has not traveled far from
its original habitat in eastern U.S., only as far as the West
Coast and some surrounding states. They usually are about 6 inches
long and a dark green color although it can be a brownish. It
is easy to tell the difference of the gender because of their
membranes. A female's membrane will be roughly the size of its
eye while the males will be quite a bit larger. Go to the links
at the bottom of the page to learn more. |
 There
are hundreds of billions of fish in the world. However, only
some of them are invasive. One of those invasive fish is the
northern snakehead. This fish's natural
habitat is Korea, Russia, and China. It has now been spotted
in several states in the United States. Because of the northern
snakehead's sheer size (85cm to 1.5 meters long) and ferocity,
it has no natural predators and no problem competing for food
with the native fish and aquatic wildlife. The northern snakehead
can stay out of water for three days by breathing through an
air bladder that works as a temporary lung giving it the ability
to move from pond to pond by flapping with its pectoral fin.
Be careful not to mistake this fish for some of its look-a-likes
such as the brown fin and the American eel. |
 The
European
crab also known as the Green crab, Shore crab, and joe
rocker has been extremely invasive due to its feeding habits
and tolerance of most climates and conditions. Originally from
Europe it has moved all the way to North America. It has been
seen in California, Oregon, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and British
Columbia. In Humbolt Bay, California there has been a 40% in
the Manila Clam harvest. Also the green crab will over compete
with local crabs for food, and habitat. For example the Dungeness
crab is a multi-million dollar fishing industry. Scientists think
that the Green crab will effect the Dungeness crab's numbers. |