When foreign plants and animals are brought to a new country they either become naturalized and thrive, or they cling to their old ways and die out. The United States now supports about 300 times as many people as it did when Columbus discovered America. This is possible because the domesticated plants and animals that the early settlers brought with them give much higher yields of food and clothing than the Indians got from wild ones, But now some of these domestic animals and plants go wild.
Honey bees leave their hives and do very well in hollow trees.
The banks of many ponds created to hold and breed German carp broke in the 1880's and in a few years carp were the most common fish in the lakes and stre aras of such states as Illinois. Abandoned dogs and cats have learned to hunt for themselves and rear their young in the forest preserves. The ringneck pheasant has increased in such numbers that in some states they are crop pests in spite of the fact that millions are killed annually by hunters. They may be foreign in origin, and cause lots of disturbance and trouble, but after a long enough time they change their ways and find their place and become Americans just like the rest of us. Argonne National Laboratory, Division of Educational Programs, Harold Myron, Ph.D., Division Director.