Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: frustrated

Genetically Engineered Eucalyptus

Apparently people haven't learned the lesson "Do not introduce foreign species" from dandelions, kudzu, killer bees, etc.  Now they're introducing genetically engineered eucalyptus to northern Florida.  The gengineering was done to make the trees frost-resistant.  In other words, they removed the primary safety catch that prevents the trees from spreading.  Not a good idea.
Tags: nature, news
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  • 42 comments
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ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

June 9 2010, 18:53:49 UTC 11 years ago

That would not surprise me. Introducing alien species to an environment is almost always detrimental to native species and harmful to the ecosystem as a whole. We've gotten lucky a few times, and the other times we've wound up with annoyances (dandelions) or disasters (kudzu, killer bees).

I once read a science fiction story in which the native aliens crippled a human colony by introducing species one at a time that caused problems. It started with a whimwham tree and turned into a shaggy dog story where each "solution" got more difficult and caused an even worse problem. Beautifully done. I think it should be required reading for all EPA and agricultural bureau staff.
msstacy13

Re: Well...

msstacy13

June 9 2010, 19:03:05 UTC 11 years ago

Hm.

If I get around to writing The Whales Themselves
I'll have to work in an idea that I didn't do well the first time I wrote.
Basically, the premise was that dolphins had introduced HIV in an attempt
to kill humans before they destroyed the planet.
ysabetwordsmith

O_O

ysabetwordsmith

June 9 2010, 19:46:39 UTC 11 years ago

Wow.

One of the poetry fishbowls generated "Weapons of Mass Destruction" in which aliens recruit Earth's sentients to fight a war. The cetaceans turn out to be the best, using musical weaponry, and the results are daunting.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

June 10 2010, 00:24:46 UTC 11 years ago

I always knew those dolphins were up to no good. I'll bet they're teamed up with the penguins - those smug little flightless bastards.
msstacy13

Re: Well...

msstacy13

June 10 2010, 02:25:46 UTC 11 years ago

Honestly, from the point of view of almost every other species,
humans are the worst thing that has ever happened to this planet.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

June 10 2010, 02:30:37 UTC 11 years ago

Dolphins and penguins being smartest of the animals, they know humans are a pestilence, and so are plotting against humanity.
msstacy13

Re: Well...

msstacy13

June 10 2010, 02:41:08 UTC 11 years ago

That would be the premise,
although they would see it more as removing a group of dangerous sociopaths.
If a band of murderous outlaws were ravaging the countryside,
citizens would form a posse to put a stop to it.
That's how the dolphins would see it.
fayanora

Re: Well...

fayanora

June 10 2010, 03:05:18 UTC 11 years ago

:-)
ysabetwordsmith

Re: Well...

ysabetwordsmith

June 10 2010, 03:30:26 UTC 11 years ago

Too true. And that right there is reason to think twice before humans go creating some kind of artificial life, especially the potentially sentient kind, because this-here experiment hasn't gone so well for Mother Earth.

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