List of invasive species in North America

Main article: List of invasive species

This is a list of invasive species in North America. A species is regarded as invasive if it has been introduced by human action to a location, area, or region where it did not previously occur naturally (i.e., is not a native species), becomes capable of establishing a breeding population in the new location without further intervention by humans, and becomes a pest in the new location, directly threatening agriculture or the local biodiversity.

The term invasive species refers to a subset of those species defined as introduced species. If a species has been introduced but remains local, and is not problematic to agriculture or to the local biodiversity, then it cannot be considered to be invasive, and does not belong on this list.

Plants

• Acroptilon repens (Russian knapweed)
• Ailanthus altissima (chouchun, tree of heaven)
• Albizia julibrissin (Persian silk tree, pink siris)
• Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard, hedge garlic)
• Ardisia crenata (coral bush, coralberry)
• Arundo donax (giant reed, Spanish cane)
• Berberis thunbergii (Japanese barberry, Thunberg's barberry)
• Bromus tectorum (downy brome, drooping brome)
• Butomus umbellatus (flowering rush, grass rush)
• Carduus nutans (musk thistle, nodding thistle)
• Casuarina equisetifolia (Australian pine, Filao tree)
• Caulerpa taxifolia ("killer algae")
• Centaurea diffusa (diffuse knapweed, white knapweed)
• Centaurea maculosa (spotted knapweed)
• Centaurea solstitialis (yellow cockspur, yellow starthistle)
• Cinnamomum camphora (camphor laurel, camphor tree)
• Colocasia esculenta (wild taro)
• Conium maculatum (poison hemlock)
• Cortaderia selloana (pampas grass)
• Cosmos sulphureus (sulfur cosmos, yellow Cosmos)
• Cynanchum louisae
• Cynanchum rossicum (dog-strangling vine, swallowwort)
• Cytisus scoparius (common broom, Scotch broom)
• Dioscorea bulbifera (air potato)
• Egeria densa (Brazilian waterweed, large-flowered waterweed)
• Eichhornia crassipes (common water hyacinth)
• Elaeagnus angustifolia (Russian olive, Russian silverberry)
• Elaeagnus umbellata (autumn olive, Japanese silverberry)
• Eucalyptus_globulus (southern blue gum, Tasmanian blue gum)
• Euphorbia esula (green spurge, leafy spurge)
• Fallopia japonica (fleeceflower, Japanese knotweed)
• Hedera helix (common ivy, English ivy)
• Heracleum mantegazzianum (giant cow parsley, giant hogweed)
• Hieracium aurantiacum (orange hawkweed, tawny hawkweed)
• Hydrilla verticillata (Esthwaite waterweed, hydrilla)
• Imperata cylindrica (cogon, cogongrass)
• Ligustrum sinense (Chinese privet)
• Ligustrum vulgare (European privet, wild privet)
• Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle)
• Lonicera maackii (Amur honeysuckle)
• Lonicera morrowii (Morrow's honeysuckle)
• Lonicera tatarica (Tartarian honeysuckle)
• Lygodium japonicum (Japanese climbing fern)
• Lygodium microphyllum (Old World climbing fern, climbing maidenhair)
• Lysimachia nummularia (creeping Jenny, herb twopence, moneywort, twopenny grass)
• Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife, purple lythrum, spiked loosestrife)
• Melaleuca quinquenervia (broad-leaved paper bark, paper bark tea tree, niaouli)
• Melinis repens (Natal grass, Natal redtop, rose Natal grass)
• Melia azedarach) (bead tree, ceylon cedar, Chinaberry, lunumidella, Persian lilac, white cedar)
• Microstegium vimineum (Japanese stiltgrass, Nepalese browntop)
• Mimosa pudica (humble plant, shameful plant, sensitive plant, sleeping grass, touch-me-not)
• Myriophyllum spicatum) (Eurasian water milfoil, Spiked water milfoil)
• Onopordum acanthium (cotton thistle, heraldic thistle, Scots thistle, Scottish thistle, woolly thistle)
• Paederia foetida (skunk vine)
• Panicum repens (torpedo grass)
• Pastinaca sativa (parsnip)
• Persicaria perfoliata * (formerly Polygonum perfoliatum; Asiatic tearthumb, Chinese tearthumb, devil shield, devil's tail tearthumb, mile-a-minute weed)
• Phragmites australis (common reed)1
• Potamogeton crispus (curly-leaf pondweed)
• Pueraria_lobata (kudzu)
• Rosa multiflora (baby rose, multiflora rose, rambler rose)
• Rubus armeniacus (Armenian blackberry, Himalayan blackberry)
• Rubus phoenicolasius (Japanese wineberry, wine raspberry, wineberry)
• Rumex crispus (curled dock, curly dock, narrow dock, sour dock, yellow dock)
• Salvinia molesta (giant salvinia, kariba weed)
• Schinus terebinthifolius (aroeira, Brazilian pepper, Christmasberry, Florida holly, rose pepper)
• Solanum viarum (tropical soda apple)
• Spartina alterniflora (saltmarsh cordgrass, smooth cordgrass)
• Striga asiatica (Asiatic witchweed)
• Tamarix spp. (saltcedar, tamarisk)
• Trapa natans (water caltrop, water chestnut)
• Triadica sebifera (Sapium sebiferum; Chinese tallow tree, Florida aspen, Gray popcorn tree)

Insects

• Adelges tsugae (Hemlock woolly adelgid)
• Aedes albopictus (Asian tiger mosquito)
• Agrilus planipennis (Emerald ash borer)
• Anoplophora glabripennis (Asian long-horned beetle)
• Apis mellifera scutellata (Africanized honeybee)
• Bemisia argentifolii (Silverleaf whitefly)
• Cactoblastis cactorum (Cactus moth)
• Coptotermes formosanus (Formosan subterranean termite)
• Diaphorina citri (Asian citrus psyllid)
• Epiphyas postvittana (Light brown apple moth)
• Halyomorpha halys (Brown marmorated stink bug )
• Harmonia axyridis (Asian lady beetle)
• Linepithema humile (Argentine ant)
• Lymantria dispar (European gypsy moth)
• Popillia japonica (Japanese beetle)
• Scirtothrips dorsalis (Chili thrips)
• Solenopsis invicta (Red imported fire ant)
• Xyleborus glabratus (Redbay ambrosia beetle)

Aquatic arthropods

• Bythotrephes cederstroemi (Spiny water flea)
• Carcinus maenas (European green crab)
• Daphnia lumholtzi
• Eriocheir sinensis (Chinese mitten crab)
• Hemigrapsus sanguineus (Japanese shore crab)

Mollusks

Freshwater snails

• Ampullariidae (Apple snails)
• Bithynia tentaculata (Faucet snail)
• Cipangopaludina chinensis (Chinese mystery snail)
• Potamopyrgus antipodarum (New Zealand mud snail)

Freshwater clams

• Corbicula fluminea (Asian clam)
• Dreissena polymorpha (Zebra mussel)

Sea snails

• Rapana venosa (Veined rapa whelk)

Land slugs

• Deroceras reticulatum
• Limax maximus
• Lehmannia marginata, previously known as Limax marginatus
• Milax gagates

Land snails

• Helix aspersa
• Theba pisana (White garden snail)

Fish

• Alosa pseudoharengus (Alewife)
• Channa argus (Northern snakehead)
• Cyprinus carpio (Common carp)
• Gymnocephalus cernuus (Eurasian ruffe)
• Hypophthalmichthys molitrix (Silver carp)
• Hypophthalmichthys nobilis (Bighead carp)
• Monopterus albus (Asian swamp eel)
• Neogobius melanostomus (Round goby)
• Oreochromis aureus (Blue tilapia)
• Petromyzon marinus (Sea lamprey)
• Pylodictis olivaris (Flathead catfish)

Reptiles and amphibians

• Boiga irregularis (Brown tree snake)
• Bufo marinus (Cane toad)
• Caiman crocodilus (Spectacled Caiman)
• Iguana iguana (Green iguana)
• Python molurus bivittatus (Burmese python)
• Rana catesbeiana (Bullfrog)
• Varanus niloticus (Nile monitor)
• Osteopilus septentrionalis (Cuban treefrog)

Birds and mammals

• Columba livia (Rock pigeon)
• Cygnus olor (Mute swan)
• Felis catus (Domestic cat)
• Myocastor coypus (Coypu, nutria)
• Passer domesticus (House sparrow)
• Sturnus vulgaris (European starling)
• Sus scrofa (Wild boar)

Pathogens

• Avipoxvirus (Fowlpox)
• Cryphonectria parasitica (Chestnut blight)
• Flavivirus (West Nile virus)
• Myxobolus cerebralis (Whirling disease)
• Ophiostoma ulmi (Dutch elm disease)
• Paramyxovirus (Exotic Newcastle disease)
• Phakopsora spp. (Soybean rust)
• Phytophthora ramorum (Sudden oak death)
• Potyvirus (Plum pox)

Others

• Didymosphenia geminata (Didymo, rock snot)
• Lumbricidae spp. (Earthworms)
• Varroa destructor (Varroa mite)

See also

• Invasive earthworms of North America
• Invasive species in the United States