INVASIVE SPECIES: WATER HYACINTH
On Aug 31, 2017, a team of volunteers from the Belize Canoe Association made a trip to clear the Old Belize River, or Haulover Creek, for the Patriotic Paddle 5th Annual Canoe Race that took place on Sep 3, 2017. The team was prepared to remove fallen trees from the waterway so canoes could safely pass, but were not expecting to encounter the massive explosion of the invasive water hyacinth.
Water hyacinths have become common place in the drainage canals in Belize City along the Northern Highway, A canal dug through Belama Phase III which extends from the Northern Highway into Haulover Creek/Old Belize River, has caused the spread of the problematic plant into this narrow waterway.
Water hyacinths have become common place in the drainage canals in Belize City along the Northern Highway, A canal dug through Belama Phase III which extends from the Northern Highway into Haulover Creek/Old Belize River, has caused the spread of the problematic plant into this narrow waterway.
The water hyacinth,Eichhornia crassipes, is an aquatic plant native to the Amazon basin, and is often a highly problematic invasive species outside its native range. The problems caused by water hyacinths include:
- Clog and desiccate canals and waterways thereby obstructing a body of water in a short period of time
- Native species are excluded, and large populations may affect water quality
- Blocks sunlight from reaching native aquatic plants
- Starves the oxygen of water, often killing fish and/or turtles
- Create a prime habitat for mosquitos, the classic vectors of disease, and a species of snail known to host a parasitic flatworm which causes schistosomiasis.
