# Science Fun: From the cost of invasive species to CIRAD's wood collection
Welcome to La Science s’aMuse, the science program co-produced by UM and Divergence-FM, which takes you on a cruise through the Muse laboratory archipelago. This week, Jean-Michel Salles, economist at CEE-M, and Rodolphe Gozlan fromIsem talk to us about the cost of invasive species. In the second part of the program, Patrick Langbour gives us a tour of the CIRAD xylotheque.
And I hope you enjoyed the long weekend. Did you catch that faint scent? The scent of longer days, warmer sunshine, and sizzling barbecues. Summer, right? Soon it will be time for swimming, vacations, and of course, the inevitable ballet of new tourists in Palavas deserting the terraces when, at 7 p.m. sharp, a squadron of tiger mosquitoes attacks them. Does that make you laugh? Me too. But the other story is that of the restaurant owner, for whom the worst bite will undoubtedly be the impact of these pesky creatures on his bottom line. And the bill may be much higher than we think.
For the first time, scientists from the CNRS, IRD, and National Museum of Natural History have just released the most comprehensive estimate ever made of the costs incurred by invasive alien species. And brace yourselves, because once again, the figures are staggering: they amount to nearly $1.3 trillion over a 40-year period. Their study was published in the prestigious journal Nature on March 31. Our guests today are co-authors of this paper. The first is with us in the studio, Jean-Michel Salles, an economist at CEE-M (Center for Environmental Economics, Montpellier). He specializes in environmental economics and biodiversity economics. The second is with us by phone, Rodolphe Gozlan, an ecologist atISEM (Institute of Evolutionary Sciences).
In the second part of the program, the report En salle des machines (In the Engine Room) takes you to CIRAD, where Patrick Langbour gives a tour of an impressive collection. The BiowooED xylotheque !
To go further:
- Read the CNRS press release
- Read the study: High and rising economic costs of biological invasions worldwide. Christophe Diagne, Boris Leroy, Anne-Charlotte Vaissière, Rodolphe E. Gozlan, David Roiz, Ivan Jarić, Jean-Michel Salles, Corey J. A. Bradshaw, and Franck Courchamp. Nature, March 31, 2021.
- More news from Franck Courchamp and his colleagues: Does science only speak English?
- Press articles:
Science is fun, you've got the ticket, let's go!
Production: University of Montpellier/Divergence FM
Host: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Interview and reporting: Aline Périault/Lucie Lecherbonnier
Editing: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Director: Bruno Bertrand
Listen to the program “A LUM LA SCIENCE” on Divergence FM 93.9
