Cryptic Invasion: Native reeds harbor aggressive alien
By Susan Milius
A mild-mannered reed native to the United States is getting blamed for mayhem created by an evil twin, says a Yale researcher.
Tall Phragmites australis plants, often just called Phragmites, have waved their tasseled tops over wetlands in North America for millennia, says Kristin Saltonstall. However in the 1970s, botanists became alarmed after seeing how extensively the species pushed into new territory and formed dense patches that crowded out other plants.