Anthony Ricciardi

@ecoinvasions.bsky.social

4.1K followers 770 following 990 posts

Ecologist (invasive species, freshwater biodiversity, bioinvasions, aquatic ecosystems) | Professor of Biology, McGill University | Director of the Bieler School of Environment | My lab account: @ricciardilab.bsky.social

Videos

Environmental science 69%

Geography 17%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Tim M. Blackburn, Anthony Ricciardi

IPBES @ipbes.net · 16h

A comprehensive review building on the IPBES #InvasiveAlienSpecies Assessment reveals that numbers of alien species are increasing for all taxonomic groups and regions, and that this trend is likely to continue.

Read more: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/brv.70058

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 2d

There are some impressive illustrations in T.H. Huxley's famous monograph, The Crayfish: An Introduction to the Study of Zoology. #Crustmas

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 2d

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Crayfish, weevils and fungi released in UK to tackle invasive species such as Japanese knotweed

Scientists working for government breed biological control agents in lab to take on species choking native wildlife

www.theguardian.com

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 2d

From thelogicofscience.com, a response to self-described skeptics who are "just asking questions" about evolution, medical science, climate change, etc:

There is nothing wrong with questioning science (indeed, it is encouraged), as long as you are willing to accept the answers science gives you.

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi, John R. Hutchinson

Danny Anduza @paleontologizing.bsky.social · 4d

MERRY #FISHMAS!

It was on this day in 1938 that Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer made a discovery which would change the world —

the first (non-fossil) coelacanth ever brought to the attention of science

Photo collage of Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer, the museum she was curator of, the trawler which brought in the fish, and the mounted coelacanth specimen itself. The text reads "THE COELACANTH December 1938"

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

Bioinvasions impose significant burgeoning costs to society. A reminder from 2023: www.watercanada.net/new-study-sh...

New study shows biological invasions from invasive species are as costly as natural disasters - Water Canada

Sault Ste. Marie, ON – Natural disasters such as storms, earthquakes and wildfires are widely recognized for their devastating economic impacts. A new study released on March 17, 2023, revealed that b...

www.watercanada.net

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

3/ Although the Kunming- Montreal target is quite ambitious, it might be achieved if there is sufficient political will to apply evidence-based solutions - as demonstrated in the case of the world's largest (& most invaded) freshwater ecosystem.

Read the story: theconversation.com/ballast-wate...

Ballast water management is reducing the flow of invasive species into the Great Lakes

Ballast water release from ocean vessels has been a major source of invasive species in the Great Lakes for over 60 years.

theconversation.com

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

2/ Target 6 is based on decades of research showing that #bioinvasions cause extinctions (www.ipbes.net/ias).

Uncontrolled invasion rates also increase the risk of ecosystem disruption and threaten stability - thereby posing a challenge to sustainable management:
link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Do globally increasing invasion rates threaten ecosystem sustainability? - Biological Invasions

Rates of biological invasion are rarely described as a sustainability issue, yet multiple lines of evidence suggest that burgeoning invasion rates cause ecosystems to be less sustainable over time. Fi...

link.springer.com

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

1/ Three years ago this month, the Kunming-Montreal U.N. Global Biodiversity Framework was adopted. It recognized invasive alien species as a major threat to biodiversity. One of its targets (Target 6) is the reduction of global invasion rates by 50%: www.cbd.int/article/cop1...

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

www.wri.org/insights/sou...

South Africa Is Fighting Back Against Invasive Plants

South Africa is tackling invasive plants to protect water, restore ecosystems and strengthen communities against floods and climate impacts.

www.wri.org

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 4d

I tend to agree.
bsky.app/profile/ecoi...

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · Dec 8

Controversial view: If one defines 'nonnative' in evolutionary terms (as I do), then humans are properly viewed as nonnative outside of Africa. If you define 'invasive' as being superabundant, spreading rapidly & causing ecological disruption, then the human species fits that definition too. 🧵 1/n

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi

🦌 The Deer Whisperer 🦌 @thedeerwhisperer.bsky.social · 4d

On this day, December 21, 1968:

The first photo taken of the whole Earth in one frame by a human from Apollo 8.

It was the first circumnavigation of the Moon by a crewed spacecraft, and the furthest humans had ever travelled away from the Earth.
📸NASA

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 5d

Remarkably prescient.

The 'dumbing down' of American society - a syndrome inevitably promoted & exploited by authoritarianism.

Any hope of reversal requires substantial numbers of people to recognize it is happening.

Saganism @sagan.bsky.social · 5d

Right Now, most of the American can relate to this message from the 90's.

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi

Saganism @sagan.bsky.social · 5d

Right Now, most of the American can relate to this message from the 90's.

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi

Conservation Biology @conbiology.bsky.social · 5d

Important information from Cossey et al:

🌊Freshwater bivalve mass mortality events in Europe require immediate conservation action and policy development.

Learn more at doi.org/10.1111/cobi...

#conservation #science #scientificjournal

Distribution, scale, and drivers of mass mortality events in Europe's freshwater bivalves

Mass mortality events (MMEs) are decimating populations and compromising key ecosystem functions around the globe. One taxon particularly vulnerable to MMEs is freshwater bivalve mollusks. This group...

doi.org

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 6d

www.earth.com/news/invasiv...

This invasive ant species is overrunning and damaging entire buildings

Tiny pharaoh ants slip through cracks, spread through walls and pipes, and can infest entire buildings—including hospitals and medical equipment.

www.earth.com

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 6d

www.yahoo.com/news/article...

The golden oyster mushroom craze unleashed an invasive species – and a worrying new study shows it’s harming native fungi

Kits that help people grow their own golden oyster mushrooms at home may be one reason this nonnative species is now spreading in the wild.

www.yahoo.com

Reposted by Samuele Ramellini, Benjamin Larue

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 6d

A reminder: Biodiversity loss, climate change, and species invasions are among the top environmental drivers of infectious disease outbreaks.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

A meta-analysis on global change drivers and the risk of infectious disease

Nature - Reducing greenhouse gas emissions, managing ecosystem health, and preventing biological invasions and biodiversity loss could help to reduce the burden of plant, animal and human diseases,...

www.nature.com

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 6d

If most #bioinvasions do not cause extinctions - and thus increase species richness in invaded areas, shouldn't people who care about biodiversity consider that to be a desirable outcome for conservation?

To answer this, consider the processes & spatial scales involved:
bsky.app/profile/ecoi...

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · Nov 21

On an island, species W is replaced by invaders X, Y & Z. Now there are more species on that island than before.

But W only occurred on that island and is now gone from the world.

One or more of the invaders spread to other islands, increasing their richness but displacing their endemic species...

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 6d

The meningeal worm, a nematode, is native to eastern Canada & eastern/central U.S. (where white-tailed deer is a natural host) and was not expected to invade typically dry & cold areas of western North America.

Marco Festa-Bianchet 🇨🇦 @marcofesta.bsky.social · 6d

.. and not a word about scientists having been warning for years that this deadly parasite will be moved around by taxpayer-subsidized game farms. Do better, CBC
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Parasitic brain worm deadly for moose, elk, caribou found in Alberta | CBC News

A parasitic brain worm fatal to moose, elk, and caribou has been confirmed in northern Alberta for the first time.

www.cbc.ca

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi, Benjamin Larue

Marco Festa-Bianchet 🇨🇦 @marcofesta.bsky.social · 6d

.. and not a word about scientists having been warning for years that this deadly parasite will be moved around by taxpayer-subsidized game farms. Do better, CBC
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Parasitic brain worm deadly for moose, elk, caribou found in Alberta | CBC News

A parasitic brain worm fatal to moose, elk, and caribou has been confirmed in northern Alberta for the first time.

www.cbc.ca

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 7d

Quote: "Researchers no longer claim that biocontrol is always benign, and indeed, many emphasized the central role of careful risk assessment. But some risk may be acceptable when the consequences of inaction are severe enough."

My question: How well can we quantify risk?
undark.org/2025/11/10/i...

Is It Time for a New Era in Invasive Species Control?

Regulations make it hard to introduce organisms that quash invasive species. Some experts see missed opportunities.

undark.org

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi

EPICislands @epicislands.bsky.social · 7d

Good news for Caribbean biodiversity. The critically endangered Lesser Antillean iguana is rebounding on a small island near Anguilla after years of habitat restoration and invasive species removal. A true conservation win.
Source: Re:wild & Fauna & Flora
https://ow.ly/9Kt050XMxcY

Reposted by Pablo García‐Díaz

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 8d

New in @biolinvasions.bsky.social: I argue that accelerating invasion rates threaten ecosystem stability & sustainable management. Thus there is an urgent need for progress toward Target 6 of the Kunming-Montreal GBF, which calls for a substantive reduction in global invasion rates.
-> rdcu.be/eVlNk

Reposted by Julie L. Lockwood

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 8d

The marbled crayfish is a global aquatic invader of increasing importance. Distributed through the pet trade; now established on four continents. Feral populations have been found in Canada in recent years.

See below for our synopsis, led by @vanmierlo.bsky.social
#Crustmas

The Ricciardians @ricciardilab.bsky.social · 8d

We have published a biological synopsis of the marbled crayfish, Procambarus virginalis
#marmorkrebs #bioinvasions

Link: waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/library-bibl...

A marbled crayfish in a lab aquarium. Photo: Ricciardi Lab, McGill University.

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi

The Ricciardians @ricciardilab.bsky.social · 8d

We have published a biological synopsis of the marbled crayfish, Procambarus virginalis
#marmorkrebs #bioinvasions

Link: waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/library-bibl...

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 8d

www.futurity.org/invasive-liz...

These invasive lizards get more agressive when it's hot out

A new study finds that invasive brown anoles become more aggressive toward native green anoles as temperatures rise.

www.futurity.org

Anthony Ricciardi @ecoinvasions.bsky.social · 8d

The quagga mussel may be the most transformative invasive mollusc known to science.

Quote: "After thousands of years of stability, Lake Geneva is undergoing a period of huge and irreversible change in the space of just a decade."
#bioinvasions #invasivespecies
www.theguardian.com/environment/...