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Introduced Species in Florida

Discussion in 'Wildlife & Nature Conservation' started by Chlidonias, 1 Oct 2017.

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  1. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    Just an interesting topic.

    Introduced pythons are a well-known problem in Florida, but the following article from 2015 says that something like 140 species of exotic herptiles have been recorded from the wild in the state, and over 50 species are confirmed as established (the break-down given for that being about 40 lizards, 4 or 5 snakes, 1 to 4 turtles, 1 crocodylian, and 3 or 4 frogs). Apparently Florida has more exotic herptiles in the wild than anywhere else on Earth.
    WEC320/UW365: The Invasion of Exotic Reptiles and Amphibians in Florida

    This site has actual lists of the exotic vertebrate species which are established or potentially-established in Florida, with notes on year of introduction and status: Nonnative Species

    I linked this article on Nile Monitors elsewhere (which is why I was thinking about the subject) and it's quite interesting: Florida’s Dragon Problem
     
    Chlidonias, 1 Oct 2017
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  2. animal_expert01

    animal_expert01 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    A video of Coyote Peterson catching an Argentine Black and White Tegu.
     
    animal_expert01, 1 Oct 2017
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  3. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

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    The other lists are interesting too, especially the Bird list - for a country that exterminated their only native parrot, Florida have made up for it with 72 species being found there at one time or another, but only two species are established (Budgerigar and Monk Parrot) while another 44 are known to be present in the wild in Florida, including Hyacinth Macaws. They also have a Turaco, three Hornbills and several passerines and waterfowl species.
    In the mammal list three species of monkey are established, and capybara are present but not yet established.
    It's not mentioned in the lists on that site but African Giant Snails have been introduced and are destroying houses.

    :p

    Hix
     
    Hix, 1 Oct 2017
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  4. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    I looked through all the lists yesterday, and they seem to have been compiled by different people using different methods. The birds, for example, include all sorts of species based on simply being present at some point, even just one individual in some cases (e.g. the Black-necked Stork, labelled as "extirpated" but noted as being one specimen living free from 1974 to 1980). I think in a lot of the cases of birds being "present" they refer to individual or irregular escapees rather than substantial numbers.

    The herptiles, on the other hand, seem to only be containing species either established or common enough to be potentially established - for example, only one chelonian is noted (Red-eared Slider) and species like Nile Crocodile which have been recorded from captured specimens are not (and as I mentioned earlier, from another report, there are apparently 140 species recorded from the wild, only a third of which are on the list).

    Anyway, I've changed the thread title a little so that it encompasses all introduced species and not just herptiles so it makes a wider discussion. Then I can talk about monkeys too.


    On the subject of parrots, this article from 2002 about the parrots of Broward County is worth a read. It's quite long but covers all the species recorded by authors. Notably, of the macaws only Ara severa is noted as breeding, all the others were obvious escapees (as was the case in many other parrot species there).
    http://www.fosbirds.org/sites/default/files/FFNs/FFNv30n4p111-131Pranty.pdf

    We have studied the exotic parrot fauna of Broward County, Florida since July 1999. During this period, 31 species of parrots were observed, with 20 of these not previously known to occur in the county. Twenty-four species (77%) were documented by still or video photographs. Three species are newly reported for Florida but only one of these was photographed. Breeding of 14 species was confirmed during our study. We summarize the population status, distribution, and verifiable evidence of occurrence for all parrots that have been reported in Broward County, including seven species observed prior to, but not during, our study. Populations of Red-crowned Parrots in Broward County may be suitable for reintroduction programs into Mexico, should such an effort be undertaken. Increased monitoring of parrots and other exotic birds in Florida is encouraged.
     
    Chlidonias, 1 Oct 2017
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  5. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    Regarding monkeys in Florida, I thought I'd recently started a thread (or posted in an existing thread) about the Rhesus Macaques there, but I can't find it.

    So here's an article about them from July this year: Wild monkeys roaming Florida and breeding like, well, monkeys

    The overall population is in the hundreds now, with around 200 at Silver Springs and others elsewhere. Unsurprisingly, animal rights nuts are impeding study of the monkeys (at the end of the article above).

    This article from 2012 notes that over 700 (!) macaques had been live-captured by one trapper from the area of Silver Springs over the previous decade: Capture of monkeys in Silver Springs sparks debate


    On the Vervet Monkeys, here's an article from 2015 on a study of them at Dania Beach which shows the population, thought to have been started in the 1950s, is stable with around 35 animals in four groups.
    Dania Beach full of monkey business

    Another interesting article: The Mystery of the Wild Monkeys of Dania: A Look Into The Species Living In South Florida’s Swampland

    The Myfwc site (linked earlier) says there are "well over 120 animals ... in Broward County near Dania". This article from this year also says "over 100": Flying Monkeys? Primates Flourish Near Fort Lauderdale Airport
     
    Chlidonias, 1 Oct 2017
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  6. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

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    Hix, 2 Oct 2017
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  7. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Many of these parrot species are established now in small numbers, but not large enough to be on the ABA's checklist. Capybaras have recently been considered established. Gray-Headed Swamphens are also present, along with White-Nosed Coatis, and Black-Tailed Jackrabbits. Currently, Jaguarundis are considered present but not established.
     
    birdsandbats, 10 Oct 2017
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  8. SwampDonkey

    SwampDonkey In the Swamp Premium Member 5+ year member

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    It seems like Black Hooded Parakeets must be established, I see those very frequently near my work in Tampa and over on the Gulf coast of Pinellas County. I have seen a couple capybaras when canoeing, that was quite a sight!
     
    SwampDonkey, 13 Oct 2017
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  9. Zooplantman

    Zooplantman Well-Known Member

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    Zooplantman, 13 Oct 2017
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  10. Zoovolunteer

    Zoovolunteer Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    An interesting sidelight on these feral animals - as up to the postglacial extinction capybaras, admittedly the extinct Giant Capybara Neochoerus pinckneyi, were native to Florida and the whole Gulf region, should this count as accidental rewilding?
     
    Zoovolunteer, 14 Oct 2017
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  11. SwampDonkey

    SwampDonkey In the Swamp Premium Member 5+ year member

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    Personally I would say "yes", interesting idea!
     
    SwampDonkey, 16 Oct 2017
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  12. lintworm

    lintworm Well-Known Member 15+ year member

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    No, just human stupidity.....

    It seems that Florida is becoming the second Hawai'i when it comes to invasions, though Hawai'i doesn't have the monkeys :p
     
    lintworm, 16 Oct 2017
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  13. animal_expert01

    animal_expert01 Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    I watched a documentary today about reptilian invaders in Florida and it showed a guy who made a living out of catching Argentine Black and White Tegus and selling into the Chinese pet trade.
     
    animal_expert01, 26 Oct 2017
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  14. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Complete (hopefully) List of Florida's Introduced Terrestrial Vertebrate Species:
    Mammals
    Feral Dog
    Feral Cat
    White-Nosed Coati
    Greater Capybara
    House Mouse
    Norway Rat
    Black Rat
    Nutria
    Mexican Gray Squirrel
    Red Deer
    Sambar Deer
    Wild Boar
    Black-Tailed Jackrabbit
    Common Squirrel Monkey
    Vervet Monkey
    Rhesus Macaque
    Birds
    Black Swan
    Egyptian Goose
    Muscovy Duck
    Mandarin Duck
    Indian Peafowl
    Red Junglefowl
    Rock Pigeon
    Eurasian Collared-Dove
    Gray-Headed Swamphen
    Rose-Ringed Parakeet
    Monk Parakeet
    Blue-Crowned Parakeet
    Red-Masked Parakeet
    Miltred Parakeet
    White-Eyed Parakeet
    Nanday Parakeet
    White-Winged Parakeet
    Yellow-Chevroned Parakeet
    Blue-and-Yellow Macaw
    Chestnut-Fronted Macaw
    Red-Crowned Parrot
    Red-Whiskered Bulbul
    European Starling
    Common Myna
    Common Hill Myna
    House Finch
    Scaly-Breasted Munia
    House Sparrow
    Spot-Breasted Oriole
    Reptiles
    Spectacled Caiman
    Brown Anole
    Bark Anole
    Knight Anole
    Crested Anole
    Large-Headed Anole
    Cuban Green Anole
    Hispaniolan Green Anole
    Jamaican Green Anole
    Green Iguana
    Common Basilisk
    Brown Basilisk
    Black Spinytail Iguana
    Mexican Spintytail Iguana
    Texas Horned Lizard
    Northern Curly-Tailed Lizard
    Hispaniolan Curly-Tailed Lizard
    Giant Ameiva
    Rainbow Whiptail
    Ashy Gecko
    Common House Gecko
    Tokay Gecko
    Mediterranean Gecko
    Moorish Gecko
    Tropical House Gecko
    Indo-Pacific Gecko
    Asian Flattail House Gecko
    Madagascar Giant Day Gecko
    Mourning Gecko
    African Five-Lined Skink
    Variable Bloodsucker
    Veiled Chameleon
    Malagasy Giant Chameleon
    Argentine Black-and-White Tegu
    Brahminy Blind Snake
    Common Boa
    Rainbow Boa
    Burmese Python
    African Rock Python
    Amphbians
    Greenhouse Frog
    Cuban Tree Frog
    Cane Toad

    This list is probably missing some. There are many more species that are present but not established, and will likely become established in the future.
     
    birdsandbats, 28 Oct 2017
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  15. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    I put a link to the official Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) lists for exotic species in the first post of the thread.
    Nonnative Species
     
    Chlidonias, 28 Oct 2017
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  16. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    That includes animals that are just escapes. My list is only established animals. Plus that list is missing some established animals.
     
    birdsandbats, 29 Oct 2017
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  17. Pleistohorse

    Pleistohorse Well-Known Member 10+ year member

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    I think the Nine-Banded Armadillo and the Coyote can reasonably be considered invasive as their first occurrence in Florida was the result of introductions. Although by now they have merged with naturally expanding populations from the north and west.

    I also thought Florida had Axis Deer, but perhaps they are not free ranging.

    I think the Capybara is a fine addition to the stare's fauna. I hope they make it. Panthers, Coyotes, and Alligators will all benefit.
     
    Pleistohorse, 29 Oct 2017
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  18. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

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    And what was the source of your list?

    :p

    Hix
     
    Hix, 29 Oct 2017
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  19. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    I think the axis deer are only on ranches (i.e. kept for hunting), rather than being genuine wild populations.

    I was surprised the armadillos were considered invasive but indeed they are. I couldn't find any firm answer on whether coyotes were listed as invasive or not, and from what I saw there also isn't any definite evidence they were introduced to Florida by people prior to the species' natural expansion.
     
    Chlidonias, 29 Oct 2017
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  20. birdsandbats

    birdsandbats Well-Known Member 5+ year member

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    Various sources, including the Florida Reptile and Amphibian atlas, Wikipedia, eBird, and field guides.
     
    birdsandbats, 29 Oct 2017
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