Beijing International Symposium on Biological Invasions

Species Exchanges between Eastern Asia and North America: Threats to Environment and Economy

June 8-11, 2004
Institute of Botany, CAS
Xiangshan
Beijing, China

Biological invasions by non-indigenous plants and animals have become major global threats because they may alter landscapes, reduce biodiversity, and endanger national economies. Eastern Asia and North America share a wide range of similar environments and related biota, which may result in each region being more susceptible to the immigrant species from the other region than from many other parts of the world. Exchanges of alien plants and animals across the Pacific Ocean are increasing markedly as commerce between these two distant regions has soared in the past few decades; the rate of these species exchanges will almost undoubtedly accelerate. As a result of this commerce, an unknown number of accidental and deliberate immigrant species have and will arrive in both regions; some of these alien species will become strong invaders in the opposite continent. Thus, there is an urgent need to promote effective international communication, collaboration, and cooperation between ecologists, policy-makers, and quarantine officers in both eastern Asia and North America, so that the experience, research results, and resources of investigators may be shared for combating these common environmental and economic threats. (more)