Florida’s Everglades face new threat from invasive eel worse than Burmese python

Florida’s Everglades is facing a stealthy invasive threat beneath its waters as the Asian swamp eel spreads through wetlands and preys on fish, crayfish, frogs and other aquatic animals. The air-breathing fish, native to East and Southeast Asia, has been established in Florida for decades, but researchers are increasingly documenting severe ecological consequences in the Everglades. A study published in Scientific Reports has linked its arrival to dramatic declines in small-bodied fish and crayfish and, more recently, to major changes in amphibian communities. The species is also exceptionally difficult to control because it can survive periods of low water by burrowing into mud. Some Everglades scientists now warn that its effects on the wetland food web could ultimately be more damaging than those of the notorious Burmese python.