Escaped omnivores and worrying plants

 Another day of cracked roads and beautiful greenery and the thought of a little bar somewhere in the future.

What rabbit hole can we go down.  How about invasive species. I know, you are saying, what about Homo Sapiens? Wouldn’t the Neanderthals have a thing to say about that? Maybe, but they haven’t got some copy to fill so, sod ‘em.

There are 26 recognised invasive species. Let us do five of them.

The Hottentot fig.  This is a coastal warrior, found on the Med, Atlantic, Balearic and Canary coasts. They come from the coasts of South Africa and the black rat has been blamed for helping them spread through its feces - which feed this creeping mat forming succulent.  The fruit is edible, but, as its other name is the sour fig its jam is a little tart.

 The Silver Wattle. Northern Spain is the new home of the Silver Wattle, with occasional visits to the Med. It is endemic to south-eastern Australia and grows to about 30m high. It is not beloved in South Africa’s Western Cape, where it is a category 1 weed. Elsewhere they are more chill, it is only category 2.

Canadian goldenrod lurks in the North and central of Spain, coming from north-east and north-central North America. It is a herbaceous perennial, with stems that grow between 60 - 120 cm. It is a thug and will create monocultures if let to its own devices.

Racoons are scattered across Galicia and Asturias.  Another North American migrant,  who has either escaped or been released in the mid twentieth century.  These little chaps are nocturnal and omnivorous - eating about 40% invertebrates, 33% plants and 27% vertebrates.  Wiki noted ‘Though raccoons were previously thought to be generally solitary, there is now evidence that they engage in sex-specific social behavior. Related females often share a common area, while unrelated males live together in groups of up to four raccoons to maintain their positions against foreign males during the mating season and against other potential invaders’.

The Tree of Heaven can be found in cities and in river corridors across Spain.  What! I hear you say, has the book of short stories by Robert W Chambers gone feral. No, we are talking about the deciduous tree of the quassia family, native to north-east and central china. It reaches 15m tall in 25 years but rarely gets to live beyond 50.  The tree was first brought from China to Europe in the 1740s, and to the United States in 1784.  Its tendency to sucker and its foul smell turned people against it.

 A fuller list can be found here. The buddleia is on the hit list - which will be regretted by butterflies everywhere.

More tomorrow.