Aquatic invasive species are plants and animals that evolved in one location and are introduced through a variety of means into another location.

Species have always used the oceans to move about the planet. By swimming or hitching a ride on a log, leaf, or coconut, organisms have found new worlds in which to thrive. But until recently, this process has been moderate, limited by the currents and the winds.

Since humans first took to the seas, though, intrepid stowaways have had ever expanding vehicles for dispersing themselves both faster and farther. The result is an increasing number of ocean ecosystems, primarily near shorelines, that are being compromised or wiped out by non-native species.

An invasive, or non-native, aquatic species can be any