Midwestern Frogs Decline, Mammal Populations Altered by Invasive Plant, Studies Reveal

One more reason to hate Buckthorn...


Midwestern Frogs Decline, Mammal Populations Altered by Invasive Plant, Studies Reveal

May 1, 2013 — Researchers at Lincoln Park Zoo and Northern Illinois University have discovered a new culprit contributing to amphibian decline and altered mammal distribution throughout the Midwest region -- the invasive plant European buckthorn. This non-native shrub, which has invaded two-thirds of the United States, has long been known to negatively impact plant community composition and forest structure, but these two innovative studies slated to publish in upcoming editions of the Journal of Herpetology and Natural Areas Journal demonstrate how this shrub negatively impacts native amphibians and affects habitat use by mammals including increased prevalence of coyotes and other carnivores...   Read full article from Science Daily HERE