Question

State one possible negative impact of importing a natural predator to control a pest

Answer 1

One negative impact or consequence of importing a natural predator to control pests is that the predator may begin feeding on economically important plant and animal species that were not the target of control. An example is the introduction of mongooses in Hawaii. Sugar cane farmers intentionally introduced mongooses to Hawaii in attempt to bring down the rat population that had risen as result of being attracted by sugar cane. Where sugar cane grows, rats flourish because they love eating the sweet cane. But since rats feed during the night and mongooses feed during the day, the two never met, rather it is the birds in Hawaii that fell prey to the mongooses. The mongooses have wreaked havoc on the bird population creating an ecological disaster.