# Presentation: 665951

## I3N 2008 

**TOOLS FOR THE PREVENTION OF BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS **
**I3N 2008**** **
**RISK ASSESSMENT OF ESTABLISHMENT & INVASION**
**PATHWAYS AND VECTOR ANALYSIS**

**Red de Información de Especies Invasoras (I3N)**

## INVASIVE ALIEN SPECIES

**INVASIVE ALIEN SPECIES**

- CAUSE ENORMOUS ECONOMIC LOSSES

- NEGATIVELY AFFECT SPECIES & NATIVE ECOSYSTEMS

- THREATEN HUMAN HEALTH AND TRADITIONAL USES OF MOTHER EARTH

## Invasive alien species in America include:

- Rats and mice that cause great losses of grain and other stored foods and threaten native animal species

**Most pests and weeds that reduce agricultural production**

**Microorganisms that cause dengue, cholera, and yellow fever**

**Microscopic algae that cause ‘Red Tides”**

**Thistles, African grasses, and other plants not favored by livestock, which lower the production of grazing rangelands**

- and many other species that cause a severe impact on the environment, economy, and health...

## Some of these species were intentionally introduced for a variety of reasons, and others arrived accidentally, with the movement of cargo or people.

## In the case of a species invasion, the severity of the problem increases over time and space.

- TIME

- Over time, invaders become more abundant and cover a larger area...

## IN THE AREA OF INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT, AS WITH HEALTH ISSUES, IT IS BETTER TO PREVENT THAN TO CURE.

**IN THE AREA OF INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT, AS WITH HEALTH ISSUES, IT IS BETTER TO PREVENT THAN TO CURE.**

## For that reason it is essential to carefully evaluate a species before authorizing its introduction and to establish monitoring systems to prevent the accidental introduction of other species.

## But...

- How do we decide which species may come in to the country and which may not?

- How do we control all of the possible pathways of accidental introductions if the volume of imports increases every day and the available resources are very limited?

## Because of this, it is important to know the characteristics of potentially invasive species, including their pathways and means of dispersion.

- In the Americas, a large part of this type of information is organized and made available through the national databases of I3N, the Network of Invasive Species Information of the Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN).

## The I3N system to prevent biological invasions is based on the use of this information to help governments in the decision making process concerning permitting or not the introduction of species and the prioritization of species monitoring activities.

## This system includes:

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- Principal objective: assist in the decision making associated with voluntary introductions of plants, by assigning a value to the risk of invasion presented by a proposed species.

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- How does it work?

- It consists of a form with 28 questions related to species characteristics that affect its probability to establish a population in the new habitat; its potential impact on biodiversity, on health, and on the economy; and our ability to control it in case it becomes invasive.

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- How does it work?

- The answers to each question receive a numeric value that is combined to create an index that indicates if the associated level of risk of introduction of the species is high or low, or if more data are needed to complete the analysis.

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- How does it work?

- The tool also includes a proposal that each country establish risk thresholds for decision making about authorizing (or not) a species introduction.

## Tool for Pathway and Vector Analysis

- Principal objective: to optimize pathway monitoring efforts and the detection of new invasions

## Includes a guide of potential vectors & associated species (or species groups) to help monitoring efforts

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- Permits the comparison of vectors that travel different pathways (for example ballast water coming from different countries), to decide which should be more closely monitored.

## Risk Assessment Tool on Establishment and Invasion

- How does it work?

- As with the case of Risk Assessment, the tool consists of a series of questions to evaluate the possibility of a species or a species group being transported by a specific vector and along a designated pathway, establishing itself, and causing an impact in a specific area.

## The I3N System to Prevent Biological Invasions proves the value of the information contained in the I3N national databases and supports the philosophy of establishing standards for invasive species information sharing throughout the Americas to optimize biodiversity conservation efforts and improve the quality of human life.