As American as Kudzu

Kudzu... As much part of the American South as sweet tea and fried chicken. Until relatively late in life I had no idea that kudzu was not native to the region. It came to the United States in 1876 by way of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. It has made itself at home ever since.

Kudzu is what conservation  biologists call an invasive species. For those who don't know, invasive species are considered the great evil of the biological world, crowding out beloved native species and generally ruining everything good in the world (o.k., not really, conservationists can get a little over-wrought at times).

An article published recently in Nature magazine questions whether in today's globalized world if the idea of invasive species even has a place anymore. The authors argue that conservationists should assess organisms on environmental impact rather than on whether they are natives. I had a professor last semester at GMU (a freshwater ecologist that spends much of his time in the Potomac watershed, a hot-spot for invasive species) that argues invasive species tend to reek havock for a short time after their introduction and then gradually settle in to their new home.

So, maybe the moral of this story is that we should relax and not worry so much about the kudzu encircling the neighborhood. It might not be native, but it is very much at home.