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Friday - March 26, 2004

From: Washington, DC
Region: Mid-Atlantic
Topic: Invasive Plants
Title: Smarty Plants on Invasive Plants
Answered by: Jil M. Swearingen, National Park Service

QUESTION:

How bad are invasive species?

ANSWER:

Invasive species impact native plants, animals, and natural ecosystems by, reducing biodiversity, altering hydrologic conditions & soil characteristics, interfering with natural succession, competing for pollinators, displacing rare plant species, serving as reservoirs of plant pathogens, replacing complex communities with single species monocultures, & diluting the genetic composition of native species through hybridization. Browse the links of our Plant Conservation & Landscape Restoration programs on-line to discover more of what you can do to nurture native plant species in your eco-region.
 

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