Invaders
Dr. Brian Alters wings his way down to Gasparilla Island in south Florida to hunt for an exotic invader - the iguana. Initially brought to the island as pets, the iguanas loved their new spot in the sun so much that they took over within a decade. The population grew to 12,000 and now the locals are fighting back.
Marc Huot dives into the Great Lakes to look for another invasive species - the zebra mussel. It first hitched a ride on the hull of a ship from Russia in the 1980's and is now costing industry billions. But there is hope. Dr. Brian Fleck introduces us to "cavitation" - a new tool that engineers are using to rid a ship’s ballast water of exotic invaders once and for all.
Dr. Jennifer Gardy looks at bad - and good - invaders often found in our own bodies. Not only can tapeworms cause nasty tummy aches, but they've now been linked to epilepsy. And hookworms, common invaders in the developing world, can actually be good for you. They're being used to treat auto-immune diseases like asthma, hay fever and Crohn's disease.
Did You Know?
- Iguanas have a third eye on their head. This eye is known as the parietal eye, which looks just like a pale scale on the top of their head. It detects light from dark and is used to detect aerial predators.
- Although iguanas do eat meat, they are primarily vegetarian. They can destroy a botanic garden in no time - five large iguanas eat as much as one sheep!
- An adult female zebra mussel is one of the most reproductive organisms in the world. It can produce between 30,000 and 40,000 eggs per year.
- Cavitation is a methed being explored to rid ballast water of invaders. It also plays an important role in the destruction of kidney stones in shock wave lithotripsy.
- Tapeworms can grow to about 10 metres in length - the largest tapeworms grow up to 18 metres or 59 feet! Once inside you, they actually manipulate your appetite, making you hungry for certain foods.
- Hookworms suck blood voraciously and can cause an iron deficiency anemia. Coupled with malnutrition, hookworm infection is a leading cause of death in children in developing countries.
Further Reading
Florida island takes up arms against iguana invasion
http://rawstory.com/Pets Gone Wild: Iguanas Spread Rapidly In South Florida
http://news.ufl.edu/International Association for Great Lakes Research
http://www.iaglr.org/Global Ballast Water Management Programme
http://globallast.imo.org/Zebra Mussel Watch
http://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/zebramussels/ANS Task Force
http://www.anstaskforce.gov/default.phpTapeworm Infection
http://www.mayoclinic.com/Helminthic Therapy: How to put your Asthma, Colitis, IBD, Crohn's or Multiple Sclerosis into remission with hookworm.
http://www.asthmahookworm.com/
