--- title: Invasive Species Harm These Countries and Cost Billions description: Invasive species threaten global agriculture to the tune of billions of dollars each year, a problem that could hurt developing countries canonical: https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-06-20T19:37:12.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T22:43:19.856Z article:section: Science og:title: These Countries Are Most Vulnerable to Invasive Species og:description: The species threaten global agriculture og:url: https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt508ce1557fdb399b/698898a2196cf472a403c181/invasive-species-plants.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: invasive species plants og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: These Countries Are Most Vulnerable to Invasive Species twitter:description: The species threaten global agriculture twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt508ce1557fdb399b/698898a2196cf472a403c181/invasive-species-plants.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # These Countries Are Most Vulnerable to Invasive Species  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Jun 20, 2016 7:37 PM CUT  Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica), an agressive invasive species, partially covers an invasive plant sign. Japanese Knotweed (Fallopia japonica), an agressive invasive species, partially covers an invasive plant sign.Christopher Kimmel—Getty Images/Aurora Open  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Jun 20, 2016 7:37 PM CUT [Invasive species](http://time.com/3000963/invasive-species-coming-soon-to-a-habitat-near-you/?iid=sr-link2 "undefined") threaten global agriculture to the tune of billions of dollars each year, a problem that could affect developing countries most, according to new [research](http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1602205113 "undefined"). The study, published in the journal _PNAS_, used a ranking system that incorporates trade flows, distribution of invasive species and crop types to determine which countries face the greatest threat. Developing countries—particularly those in sub-saharan Africa—could see their agriculture sectors most affected in proportion to their GDP, according to the study. Malawi, Burundi and Guinea top the list. “These countries generally do not have diverse economies, making them disproportionately more dependent on agriculture,” said study author Dean Paini, a researcher at the Plant Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre, in a press release. “Any threat from invasive species can potentially have a greater relative impact on these countries.” **Read More**: [Burmese Pythons Are Taking Over the Everglades](http://time.com/3752598/burmese-pythons-taking-over-everglades/ "undefined") Researchers also found that the United States and China act as the top sources of invasive species due to the high level of trade connected to both countries as well as the high number of invasive species already found there. Invasive species—aided by climate change, increased trade and land use changes—can wreck havoc in ecosystems where they settle by killing local species and acting as pests. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/"},"headline":"These Countries Are Most Vulnerable to Invasive Species","datePublished":"2016-06-20T19:37:12.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T22:43:19.856Z","description":"Researchers also found that the United States and China act as the top sources of invasive species","url":"https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/","keywords":["Environment"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt508ce1557fdb399b/698898a2196cf472a403c181/invasive-species-plants.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Worland","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/justin-worland/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt508ce1557fdb399b/698898a2196cf472a403c181/invasive-species-plants.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"invasive species plants","caption":"invasive-species-plants.jpeg","creditText":"Christopher Kimmel—Getty Images/Aurora Open","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/environment/","name":"Environment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4375137/invasive-species-united-states/","name":"These Countries Are Most Vulnerable to Invasive Species"}}]}] ```