Chapter 5 Threats
reported in peer-reviewed literature that integration of invasive plant species into a natural community can disrupt native plant-pollinator relationships and networks (Memmott and Waser 2002; Bjerknes et al. 2007; Morales and Traveset 2009; van Hengstum 2013) . Cogongrass is an invasive perennial grass considered a major weed of forestlands, rights-of- ways, agricultural and disturbed lands, and natural ecosystems in the southeastern United States (Lucardi et al. 2014) . It is considered to be one of the top 10 worst weeds in the world and is a federal noxious weed. Rhizomes have sharply pointed tips and form a dense interwoven mat usually within the upper foot of the soil surface. The thick root mat prevents native species from establishing or growing and enables Cogongrass to out-compete native species for water and nutrient resources. Beach Vitex is a quickly growing coastal landscape plant tolerant of salt and drought. It can reproduce through seed production (as high as 10,000 to 20,000 seeds per square meter) or broken shoot fragments from established plants that can be washed by storms onto beaches at great distance from each other. It forms dense cover on beach dunes and can inhibit growth of the native species Seabeach Amaranth, which is federally listed as threatened. It can also cover important beach-nesting habitat for shorebirds that breed in North Carolina such as the Piping Plover (federally listed as endangered), American Oystercatcher, Black Skimmer, Common Tern, and Least Tern. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), also referred to as novel or synthetic organisms, are those in which the genetic material has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination (OJEC 2001; Jeschke et al. 2013) . Synthetic organisms are completely synthesized by humans and are typically built by assembling short DNA sequences to create new genomes (Preston 2008; Deplazes and Huppenbauer 2009; Jeschke et al. 2013) . While it is reported that there are currently no known cases of a synthetic organism becoming established in the wild, GMOs and synthetic organisms can serve as novel hosts for emerging pathogens that can become established (Jeschke et al. 2013) . Less diverse ecosystems may be more susceptible to invaders, and likewise, pathogens may be transmitted more readily in ecological communities with reduced diversity (Jeschke et al. 2013) . Another concern related to the development and increased cultivation of GMOs is the potential escape of transgenes into native populations and the potential change to the phenotype of an organism and the effects of transgenes on natural ecosystems (Snow et al. 2005; Stewart et al. 2003; Andow and Zwahlen 2006; van Hengstum 2013) . 5.10.3 SGCN Priority Species The Taxa Team evaluation considered the level of threat invasive and problematic species and genes represents to SGCN priority species. Lists of the SGCN and other priority species this threat is expected to have a very high or high impact on can be found in Appendix 5, Table 5.10-1 Species at Risk of Impacts From Invasive and Other Problematic Species and Genes.
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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