In the course of this class, I have learned that exotic and invasive species are a growing phenomena. When a pet owner decides that they want a new and different animal they buy what is called and exotic species like the Burmese Python. They take home their pet to find out that they cannot care for it. So instead of returning it to a pet store, they dump it out into the wild. Because these species have no natural predators they get out of control. This is not true for pets only but also plants. 
What people do not realize is how damaging this is to the ecosystem. Not just North America though, but all ecosystems. When a person brings this animal in and release it not only does it not have a predator but now it has to find a new food source. When it begins to devour other plants and animals this by subsequent effects more than just one species. It now effects all the species that the invasive eats or interacts with. Because they invasive species have different needs back where they are from they sometimes have adaptations that we are not use to here. These adaptations will sometimes even give them an advantage over a native species, which in turn puts the native species at risk. Another downfall of these invasive species is that they must have come from somewhere. Now a population loosing one of their males or females does not seem that bad. However, when you take into consideration that is one person whats this animal about a thousand more do to. Then we get into the effects of the population when the amount of viable reproducers has dramatically decreased. Not only does this animal affect our ecosystem but another as well. The global connection between the import and export of exotic species is not always legal, but it still happens. And it effects the world.
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