Transcript

Eradicating the red quinine plant

DR. DAVID ROBINSON

The Galápagos are famous for their reptiles and birds. But much of the islands' flora is equally interesting, and it's just as vulnerable to the impact of humans. Over the last centuries, almost 500 species of plant have been imported into the Galápagos, some for agriculture, some for gardens, and some by accident. Like the wild goats who compete with indigenous tortoises for food, so these newcomers compete with local plants for sunlight, soil, and water. Santa Cruz, for example, is home to a unique species of plant called Miconia, which is only found on one other island. Today, it is under threat from the red quinine tree, first brought onto the islands in the late 1940s. The red quinine tree is very hardy, and it reproduces so rapidly that there were worries that it might wipe out the whole of the Miconia zone. Today, the National Park Service are actively engaged in a programme to eradicate the red quinine; injecting any seed-bearing trees with cartridges filled with herbicide. It's expensive, time-consuming work, and there are many trees to kill. But scientists are optimistic that they may eventually eradicate the most damaging newcomers.