Thank you, Chair.
As a scientist myself, I'm very much fascinated by your concept of engaging more citizen scientists on the ground.
I want to ask a question about the definition of “pest species”. I realize that Richard asked a similar question, but I want to go at it from a different angle.
I realize that the terms “alien” and “invasive” refer to the shift from one ecosystem to another, but once a pest species or a disease has moved into the new ecosystem within Canada, at what point is it no longer considered alien or invasive, and rather, becomes native?
In other words, once it has extended beyond its usual geographic range and has occupied some area steadily, does it ever become native or does it remain forever alien or invasive?