Eating invasive species has been suggested by people such as ecologist
Joe Roman
Joe Roman is a conservation biologist, academic, and author of the books ''Whale'' and '' Listed: Dispatches from America's Endangered Species Act''. His conservation research includes studies of the historical population size of whales, the ...
as a way of reducing their numbers. This is a list of cases where this has been suggested, tried and/or is now established.
Plants
* Autumn olive (''
Elaeagnus umbellata
''Elaeagnus umbellata'' is known as Japanese silverberry, umbellata oleaster, autumn olive, autumn elaeagnus, or spreading oleaster. The species is indigenous to eastern Asia and ranges from the Himalayas eastwards to Japan. It is a hardy, aggre ...
''), invasive to central and northeastern United States, and Europe.
* Jackfruit (''
Artocarpus heterophyllus
The jackfruit (''Artocarpus heterophyllus''), also known as jack tree, is a species of tree in the fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family (Moraceae). Its origin is in the region between the Western Ghats of southern India, all of Bangladesh, Sri ...
''), invasive to Brazil.
* Water hyacinth (''
Eichhornia crassipes
''Pontederia crassipes'' (formerly ''Eichhornia crassipes''), commonly known as common water hyacinth is an aquatic plant native to South America, naturalized throughout the world, and often invasive outside its native range.
* Garlic mustard (''
Alliaria petiolata
''Alliaria petiolata'', or garlic mustard, is a biennial flowering plant in the mustard family (Brassicaceae). It is native to Europe, western and central Asia, north-western Africa, Morocco, Iberia and the British Isles, north to northern S ...
Pueraria
''Pueraria'' is a genus of 15–20 species of legumes native to Asia. The best known member is kudzu, also called Japanese arrowroot. The genus is named after 19th century Swiss botanist Marc Nicolas Puerari.
The genus, as traditionally circum ...
'' spp.)
* Armenian blackberry (''
Rubus armeniacus
''Rubus armeniacus'', the Himalayan blackberry or Armenian blackberry, is a species of ''Rubus'' in the blackberry group ''Rubus'' subgenus ''Rubus'' series ''Discolores'' (P.J. Müll.) Focke. It is native to Armenia and Northern Iran, and wide ...
'')
*
Dandelion
''Taraxacum'' () is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelions. The scientific and hobby study of the genus is known as taraxacology. The genus is native to Eurasia and Nor ...
(''
Taraxacum
''Taraxacum'' () is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelions. The scientific and hobby study of the genus is known as taraxacology. The genus is native to Eurasia and Nor ...
'' spp.)
*
Water caltrop
The water caltrop is any of three extant species of the genus ''Trapa'': ''Trapa natans'', ''Trapa bicornis'' and the endangered ''Trapa rossica''. It is also known as buffalo nut, bat nut, devil pod, ling gok ( Chinese: 菱角), ling nut, lin ko ...
(''Trapa'' spp.)
*Burdock (''
Arctium
''Arctium'' is a genus of biennial plants commonly known as burdock, family Asteraceae. Native to Europe and Asia, several species have been widely introduced worldwide. Burdock's clinging properties, in addition to providing an excellent mecha ...
'' spp.) - was introduced to Europe, leaves, flowers and roots are edible
*Japanese knotweed (''
Reynoutria japonica
''Reynoutria japonica'', synonyms ''Fallopia japonica'' and ''Polygonum cuspidatum'', is a species of herbaceous perennial plant in the knotweed and buckwheat family Polygonaceae. Common names include Japanese knotweed and Asian knotweed. It is ...
'' spp.) - was introduced to the United States from East Asia, shoots are edible and the roots are used for medicinal purposes
*Wintercress (''
Barbarea vulgaris
''Barbarea vulgaris'', also called wintercress (usual common name), or alternatively herb barbara, rocketcress, yellow rocketcress, winter rocket, yellow rocket, and wound rocket, is a biennial herb of the genus '' Barbarea'', belonging to the fa ...
Pastinaca sativa
The parsnip ('' Pastinaca sativa'') is a root vegetable closely related to carrot and parsley, all belonging to the flowering plant family Apiaceae. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long taproot has cream-colored ski ...
Cane toad
The cane toad (''Rhinella marina''), also known as the giant neotropical toad or marine toad, is a large, terrestrial true toad native to South and mainland Central America, but which has been introduced to various islands throughout Oceania ...
(''Rhinella marina'')
* Green shore crab (''Carcinus maenas'')
*
Chinese mitten crab
The Chinese mitten crab ('; , "big sluice crab"), also known as the Shanghai hairy crab (, pinyin, p ''Shànghǎi máoxiè''), is a medium-sized burrowing crab that is named for its furry claws, which resemble mittens. It is native t ...
(''Eriocheir sinensis'')
* Common carp (''Cyprinus carpio'')
*
Eastern grey squirrel
The eastern gray squirrel (''Sciurus carolinensis''), also known, particularly outside of North America, as simply the grey squirrel, is a tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus''. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the most prodi ...
Domestic pig
The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...
Goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
Nutria
The nutria (''Myocastor coypus''), also known as the coypu, is a large, herbivorous, semiaquatic rodent.
Classified for a long time as the only member of the family Myocastoridae, ''Myocastor'' is now included within Echimyidae, the family of ...
(''Myocastor coypus'')
* Green iguana (''Iguana iguana'')
*
Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, bu ...
Signal crayfish
The signal crayfish (''Pacifastacus leniusculus'') is a North American species of crayfish. It was introduced to Europe in the 1960s to supplement the North European ''Astacus astacus'' fisheries, which were being damaged by crayfish plague, but ...
Mozambique tilapia
The Mozambique tilapia (''Oreochromis mossambicus'') is an oreochromine cichlid fish native to southeastern Africa. Dull colored, the Mozambique tilapia often lives up to a decade in its native habitats. It is a popular fish for aquaculture. Due ...
(''Oreochromis mossambicus'')
*
Nile perch
The Nile perch (''Lates niloticus''), also known as the African snook, Goliath perch, African barramundi , Goliath barramundi, Giant lates or the Victoria perch, is a species of freshwater fish in family Latidae of order Perciformes. It is wi ...
(''Lates niloticus'')
*
Lionfish
''Pterois'' is a genus of venomous marine fish, commonly known as lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. Also called firefish, turkeyfish, tastyfish, or butterfly-cod, it is characterized by conspicuous warning coloration with red, white, crea ...
(''
Pterois
''Pterois'' is a genus of venomous marine fish, commonly known as lionfish, native to the Indo-Pacific. Also called firefish, turkeyfish, tastyfish, or butterfly-cod, it is characterized by conspicuous warning coloration with red, white, cre ...
'' spp.)
*
Quagga mussel
The quagga mussel (''Dreissena rostriformis'', also known as ''Dreissena bugensis'' or ''Dreissena rostriformis bugensis'') is a species (or subspecies) of freshwater mussel, an aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Dreissenidae. It has an aver ...
(''Dreissena rostriformis'')
*
Zebra mussel
The zebra mussel (''Dreissena polymorpha'') is a small freshwater mussel. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally introduced to numerous other areas and has become an invasive species in ma ...
(''Dreissena polymorpha'')
*
Walking catfish
The walking catfish (''Clarias batrachus'') is a species of freshwater airbreathing catfish native to Southeast Asia. It is named for its ability to "walk" and wiggle across dry land, to find food or suitable environments. While it does not tru ...
(''Clarias batrachus'')
*
Snails
A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gastro ...
See also
*
Lists of invasive species
These are lists of invasive species by country or region. A species is regarded as invasive if it has been introduced by human action to a location, area, or region where it did not previously occur naturally (i.e., is not a native species), becom ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edible invasive species
edible
An edible item is any item that is safe for humans to eat. "Edible" is differentiated from "eatable" because it does not indicate how an item tastes, only whether it is fit to be eaten. Nonpoisonous items found in nature – such as some mushroo ...