Eyecatching, yes, but very unwanted

Invasive species are a constant challenge for park managers around the world, and this is no different for our stewardship team here in Stanley Park. This is why: invasive alien species are animals, plants or other organisms that are introduced by humans into places where they wouldn’t naturally occur. Once they get established, they have a negative impact on local ecosystems and species.

The invasive species that we are up against in the Park will often compete with native species, and be very successful at this.

Yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus) is one of these alien invaders. Although it’s a very attractive-looking perennial plant, it is very bad for Stanley Park as it rapidly colonizes and displaces native flora and fauna in wet areas and damages wildlife habitat. The plant has large seed pods with hundreds of seeds in them, and these need to be removed before the seeds disperse.

Today, SPES’ invasive species “SWAT” team – a fantastic team of hard-working volunteers – removed 3.38m3 of yellow flag iris from the south shoreline of Lost Lagoon. That’s roughly equivalent to what can fit into a large bathtub.

You can read more about our invasive species work on our website. If you want to help SPES tackle invasive species in Stanley Park, contact our Stewardship Coordinator, stewardship@stanleyparkecology.ca.

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