VIII Trilateral Committee Meeting Invasive Species as a Trilateral Challenge

1. VIII Trilateral Committee Meeting Invasive Species as a Trilateral Challenge The possible expansion of the cactus moth, Cactoblastis cactorum, in the USA and Mexico Jorge Soberón, Laura Arriaga, Elizabeth Moreno, and Jesús Alarcón Albuquerque April 29, 2003

2. Response Actions of the Ministry of Agriculture (SAGARPA) General Direction of Plant Health • 2003 Contigency Program to Avoid the Introduction of Cactoblastis cactorum • Includes 20 Mexican states and the corridors between Tamaulipas and the Peninsula of Yucatán. More productive states and wild plantations. • Training workshops (3) in collaboration with the State Governments and State Committees for Plant Health to aware of the problem and learn techniques to identify the species and plant damage. • State Governments have assigned a budget to prevent the introduction of the species. • Project with the Atomic Energy Agency. Includes training workshops with Drs. Zimmermann and Blum. • Policies and regulations: “Dispositivo Nacional de Emergencia” • Imports of cactus pear from the USA have been eliminated.

3. The analysis included 63 species of Opuntia, distributed in Mexico and / or the USA • 35 species with distribution only in Mexico Opuntia amyclaea Opuntia atrispina Opuntia atropes Opuntia azurea Opuntia bensonii Opuntia bravoana Opuntia cantabrigiensis Opuntia decumbens Opuntia depressa Opuntia durangensis Opuntia excelsa Opuntia fuliginosa Opuntia guilanchi Opuntia huajuapensis Opuntia hyptiacantha Opuntia jaliscana Opuntia joconostle Opuntia lagunae Opuntia lasiacantha Opuntia leucotricha Opuntia megacantha Opuntia megarhiza Opuntia neochrysacantha Opuntia pilifera Opuntia pubescens Opuntia pycnacantha Opuntia rastrera Opuntia rileyi Opuntia robusta Opuntia spinulifera Opuntia spraguei Opuntia streptacantha Opuntia tapona Opuntia tehuantepecana Opuntia tomentosa Opuntia velutina Opuntia wilcoxii

4. 35 species with distribution only in Mexico Opuntia hyptiacantha Opuntia durangensis Opuntia huajuapensis Opuntia lasiacantha

5. Sixteen species distribute only in the USA Opuntia arbuscula Opuntia arenaria Opuntia erinacea Opuntia fragilis Opuntia humifusa Opuntia pinkavae Opuntia polyacantha Opuntia pusilla Opuntia erinacea Opuntia stricta Opuntia strigil Opuntia triacantha Opuntia x basilaris Opuntia x columbiana Opuntia x curvispina Opuntia x fosbergii Opuntia x vaseyi Opuntia stricta

6. Twelve species are shared between Mexico and the USA Opuntia basilaris Opuntia californica Opuntia chlorotica Opuntia dillenii Opuntia engelmannii Opuntia littoralis Opuntia dillenii Opuntia macrocentra Opuntia macrorhiza Opuntia microdasys Opuntia oricola Opuntia phaeacantha Opuntia x occidentalis Opuntia engelmannii

7. The 63 resulting maps were added to obtain the Opuntia hot spots. Opuntia lagunae Photos by Jon Rebman and George Lindsay http://www.oceanoasis.org/fieldguide/opun-lag-sp.html

8. Ecological similarity areas for Cactoblastis cactorum Sampling points in Argentina provided by SI Mature larvae http://www.geocities.com/granacochinilla/fotos02.html

9. Potential overlapping areas between the Opuntia and the moth,Cactoblastis cactorum,in North America Orange and yellow lines: Similar ecological areas for the moth Areas in blue: Species accumulation of Opuntia

10. Conclusions • The cactus moth is a threat not only for the Mexican species of Opuntia, but also for the native species of USA. • Preventive actions are needed to be established by the USA government to avoid the dispersion of this invasive species to Central and Western USA. • We would like to enhance the Department of Interior, or the USA governmental agencies in charge of addressing the wildlife issues, to promote and coordinate some preventive actions in collaboration with the Mexican agencies to avoid the dispersion of the cactus moth.

11. Acknowledgements Conabio would like to thank Drs. Salvador Arias, Héctor Hernández, Raúl Puente, Jon Rebman, and Ana Weitzman, for providing their data, expertise, and specimens information. Dr. Townsend Peterson for providing digital covers for North America. Likewise, 15 herbaria from the USA (RSA, A, F, MICH, MO, DES, NY, POM, LL, SD, CAS, ASU ,UNM ,US ,ARIZ), and 24 Mexican Herbaria(CHAPA, CE-UNAM, HUAZ, CIIDIR, BCMEX, ENCB, FCME, HCIB, CICY, QMEX, XAL, UAT, UAS, UAMIZ, UADY, INIF, SLPM, HUMO, MODERN, ZEA, MEXU, INECOL-CRD, IEB, IBUG) providedOpuntia specimens information compiled in the Mexican National Biodiversity Information System (SNIB) and through REMIB.