Study warns on invasive species
Photo - Carl Morrow/Alamy
A study by Queen's University in Belfast has warned that many species native to Ireland will face extinction if the expansion of invasive species from overseas such as the American grey squirrel, the bank vole and the greater white toothed shrew is not checked. Species at risk include the Irish Hare (pictured), the red squirrel, and the red deer.
Published in the journal Biological Invasions, the study claims that Ireland's native small mammals will be wiped out in approximately 80% of their natural habitat if the rate of invasion continues at the present rate.
Commenting on the findings, Professor Ian Montgomery, of the School of Biological Sciences at Queens University said "It is no longer tenable to treat each invasive species as an isolated case. We should establish a realistic plan identifying the mammal species that are key to maintaining our unique biodiversity and ecology and those that we should eliminate or control."
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