The Inspecting Invaders Quiz

We all read the Journal of Hymenoptera Research don't we? What you don't? Gotta say you're missing out as they've just published a cracking piece on the invasive species Sphagneticola trilobata. You don't know what that is either? Sometimes I wonder if you guys actually care about environmental change at all....

I'll give you a chance to redeem yourselves though. Welcome to the first ever Inspecting Invaders Quiz! And guess what, you're the contestant. No backing out now. Read this piece and answer the following questions in the comments section below. Your marks go towards your degree. No pressure.

Question 1. The creeping daisy (Sphagneticola trilobata) could have a positive influence on...?
A. Wild bee species
B. Crops
C. Biodiversity
D. All of the above.

Question 2. What is the likely cause of the bee species (Braunsapis puangensis) arrival in Fiji?
A. Climate Change
B. Teleportation
C. Anthropogenic activity
D. Hurricanes

Question 3. The global decline of honey bee populations is?
A. A sticky situation
B. Celebrated by wasps
C. A growing concern for crop pollination reasons.
D. Not important, they're only bees.

Question 4. How many arthropod species are associated with road side patches of Sphagneticola trilobata?
A. Over 100
B. None, invasive species kill everything else, duh.
C. 12
D. 3

Question 5. 'flowering plants considered as invasive may have ________ effects on insects, especially on nectar and pollen feeding species'
A. Negative
B. Positive
C. The Doppler
D. Mass

The answers are here. No peeking til you've submitted below. No one likes a cheat.

If you got 5, give yourself a pat on the back. If you scored less than 5, shame on you. That was the easiest quiz ever.

However, regardless of your score, what I want you to take from this is more than just a gold star or a greatly enhanced/deflated sense of pride. Take a deeper meaning, look beyond the obvious negative connotations associated with invasive species, free your minds of prejudice and embrace species for what they do, not what they are labelled as.

I'll post a piece expanding on that point later this week with more examples of positive invasive impacts and a critique of research bias. I can hear the ecologists quaking in their boots already.

Over and out

The Invader Inspector