An Ecologist Doubts the Impact of Exotic SpeciesMany conservationists have dedicated their lives to eradicating invasive plant and animal species, but Mark Davis wants them to reassess their missionsBy Brendan Borrell
Last November, Mark Davis spoke at a special meeting in South Africa to honor the 50th anniversary of Charles Elton's seminal book, The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants. From Asian kudzu conquering the U.S. South to brown tree snakes wiping out birds on Guam, the ecological havoc wrought by exotic plants and animals has become—along with habitat destruction and climate change—one of the most talked about problems in species conservation.
But as Davis took the podium, he let his sport coat swing open to reveal his flip-flopped necktie, the skinny end stretching to his belt buckle—a not-so-subtle jab at the late Charles Elton, a notoriously inept dresser.
Though he may have earned a few chuckles from the in-joke, Davis's shenanigans did little to loosen up a crowd of scientists who viewed him as an exotic species, an alien and, perhaps, an invader. Davis is a plant ecologist at Macalester College in St. Paul who has spent the past 15 years challenging the most cherished principle of restoration ecology: that nonnative species should be eradicated from the landscape.
Last November, Mark Davis spoke at a special meeting in South Africa to honor the 50th anniversary of Charles Elton's seminal book, The Ecology of Invasions by Animals and Plants. From Asian kudzu conquering the U.S. South to brown tree snakes wiping out birds on Guam, the ecological havoc wrought by exotic plants and animals has become—along with habitat destruction and climate change—one of the most talked about problems in species conservation.
But as Davis took the podium, he let his sport coat swing open to reveal his flip-flopped necktie, the skinny end stretching to his belt buckle—a not-so-subtle jab at the late Charles Elton, a notoriously inept dresser.
Though he may have earned a few chuckles from the in-joke, Davis's shenanigans did little to loosen up a crowd of scientists who viewed him as an exotic species, an alien and, perhaps, an invader. Davis is a plant ecologist at Macalester College in St. Paul who has spent the past 15 years challenging the most cherished principle of restoration ecology: that nonnative species should be eradicated from the landscape.
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