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Biology vocabulary · Ecology and Ecosystems

Invasive species

Meaning in biology, with examples

/ɪnˈveɪsɪv ˈspiːʃiːz/nounCommon term

In biology, invasive species means: A species brought by humans, on purpose or by accident, to a region where it does not naturally live, and which spreads and harms native species or the ecosystem.

In Turkish: istilacı tür, yabancı istilacı tür

How it is used

Also called an alien, non-native or introduced species, although not every introduced species becomes invasive. Ecologists talk about controlling, managing or eradicating invasive species. Islands and inland waters are especially vulnerable.

Example sentences

  1. The silver-cheeked toadfish, an invasive species, entered the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal.

  2. Invasive species often spread quickly because they have no natural predators in their new habitat.

Common collocations

  • control invasive species
  • invasive alien species
  • spread of invasive species
  • introduced species
  • speciesA group of similar organisms that can breed with each other and produce fertile offspring. It is the basic unit used to classify living things.
  • biodiversityThe variety of life in a particular place or on Earth as a whole, including the diversity of genes, species and ecosystems.
  • habitatThe natural place where a particular organism or species lives and finds the food, shelter and conditions it needs.
  • ecosystemA community of living things together with the non-living parts of their environment, such as water, soil and climate, all interacting as one system.
  • predatorAn animal that hunts, kills and eats other animals. The animal that it hunts is called its prey.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Ecology and Ecosystems

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