TOEFL Integrated Writing

📖 Reading Passage

The introduction of invasive species is often cited as a major threat to biodiversity. However, some scientists argue that invasive species can actually have net positive effects on their new ecosystems. First, invasive plants like kudzu can increase soil fertility by fixing nitrogen and adding organic matter, which benefits native plants. Second, invasive species can serve as a food source for native predators, thereby supporting local food webs. For example, the introduction of Asian clams in San Francisco Bay has provided a new prey item for native diving ducks. Third, invasive species can fill empty ecological niches, such as when non-native earthworms in North American forests accelerate decomposition and nutrient cycling, which had been slowed by the absence of native decomposers.

🎧 Listening Lecture

The lecture challenges the idea that invasive species are beneficial. While it is true that kudzu adds nitrogen, its rapid growth smothers native vegetation, reducing plant diversity and altering soil chemistry in ways that actually harm native species. As for providing food, Asian clams may feed ducks, but they also outcompete native mussels and filter out plankton, which native species rely on, leading to a net decline in overall biodiversity. Finally, the claim about earthworms is misleading. In forests where native earthworms were absent, leaf litter accumulates slowly, but earthworms consume this litter too quickly, causing a rapid release of nutrients that leaches away, and their burrowing also disrupts the root systems of native plants, thereby decreasing forest regeneration. Thus, the apparent benefits are outweighed by serious ecological harms.