Have you ever witnessed dense Mesquite canopy near your house? or in the neighboring compounds?. Mesquite, the biological name Prosopis juliflora, is well known as Karuvelam, a native of Mexico We might have wondered the region covered with these Mesquite shrubs is very greenish.
The Mesquite shrubs are disruptive to the ecosystem, stealing its groundwater. They can penetrate to the depth of 20m in search of groundwaters. It drinks about 4 liters of water for 1 kilogram of biomass. They also emit substances that are toxic to the growth of other plants.
By 2004 this plant was listed in the top 100 of the least wanted plants. These trees are said to spread rapidly and can withstand any dry conditions leading to the loss of native plant species. One such endangered species is the Mukul myrrh tree. Many research analysis has found in the regression of native trees, shrubs, herbs, and grasses due to the rapid spread of this shrub in Asia and Africa. These shrubs are considered pests.
If this shrub is found to be flourishing in any region, it necessarily has to be uprooted as it steals the groundwater, they are also no good cattle fodder, as prolonged intake has been reported in causing illness in cattle, causing neuromuscular poisoning due to certain alkaloids from the shrubs.
Reference:
Almeida, V. M., Rocha, B. P., Pfister, J. A., Medeiros, R. M., Riet-Correa, F., Chaves, Mendonça, F. S. (2017). Spontaneous poisoning by Prosopis juliflora (Leguminosae) in sheep. Pesquisa Veterinária Brasileira, 37, 110-114.
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