So many things have been ravaging our region’s habitats directly related to our “messing around with Mother Nature.”

Our transglobal transportation of goods has exasperated the quick movement of organisms into new, wide-open niches. Usually with bad results. I’ve pulled together a list of plants, diseases and animals that have been doing, and will continue to do, potentially irreparable harm to our ecosystems.

For example, American chestnut trees used to tower over 100 feet tall, some with trunks 8 to 10 feet in diameter. I really wish I could have seen them. They dominated our forests up and down the Appalachians. But a fungus brought to this country circa 1904 has basically wiped out those trees. Yes, shoots still grow from the old root systems, but the chestnut blight soon kills them when they reach a 2- or 3-inch trunk size.

A few stands of trees still survive in Michigan and Wisconsin, and maybe a number of generations of Reeds from now will get to see them again. Maybe. I’ll find time in a future column to talk about the chestnut’s importance to our country’s growth.

Here is my Scourge List in no particular order of destruction or importance: chestnut blight, hemlock woolly adelgid, gypsy moth, white nose syndrome, emerald ash borer, Japanese knotweed, Japanese barberry, Japanese stilt grass, spotted lanternfly and beech leaf disease.

I know I said Top 10, but I’ve added one, that in my opinion, makes my “bad” list: Canada geese.

1. Hemlock woolly adelgid — Introduced in U.S. in the 1950s, it has killed millions (and seriously damaged millions) of a very important forest tree in some areas of our state and throughout much of the country. (More on the ramifications of losing these trees in a future column.)

2. Gypsy moth — Introduced here in 1869, it’s now spreading to the Great Lakes, Midwest and to our South. In my lifetime, I’ve seen infestations twice decimate, in particular, white and chestnut oak trees. Of course they devour others as well.

3. White nose syndrome — Discovered in New York state in 2006, it has almost caused the extinction of the little brown bat and tricolored bat. What will be the long-term effect be without these wonderful allies? Probably the most devastating wildlife disease ever.

4. Emerald ash borer — First discovered in Michigan in 2002, it’s now found in at least 22 states. The larvae feed just under the bark, leaving tunnels that effectively kill off the phloem tissue that carries food from the leaves to the roots. Only 1 in 1,000 trees may survive.

5. Japanese knotweed — This very aggressive plant spreads rapidly with underground rhizomes and is smothering our native plants and offering almost no value. Some stands are so dense you may need a machete to chop through the plants, which grow to 8 or 10 feet each summer.

6. Japanese barberry — Once planted as a hedge bordering front yards, it is spreading like wildfire, also out-competing our native plants.

7. Japanese stilt grass — I’m finding this everywhere, from my favorite pristine areas on the edge of the Pocono Plateau to our backyards. It grows to about 15 to 18 inches high and smothers new tree seedlings and our native grasses.

8. Spotted lanternfly — Only discovered in Berks County in 2002, the species is spreading rapidly. The jury is still out on how damaging to our orchards and vineyards it will be.

9. Beech leaf disease — A rather recent introduction that could possibly be as devastating to the beech forests as chestnut blight was to the once-dominant tree of these Eastern forests.

10. Resident Canada geese — This may be my pet peeve, but I remember I photographed a flock of geese at Beltzville Lake around January 1979. (That was almost unheard of.) This species used to migrate in flocks and flocks over our heads in early October and again in March back and forth to feeding and nesting areas. They now remain and just keep exploding in numbers. Boy, oh, boy, do they ever befoul our parks, practice fields, golf courses, etc. And they keep you from swimming in so many lakes due to high bacteria counts.

Test Your Outdoor Knowledge: True or False: Both the praying mantis and lady bird beetle are not native to the United States.

Last Week’s Trivia Answer: The wood thrush, veery, and in the Poconos area, the hermit thrush, all breed in this region.

Email Barry Reed at breed71@gmail.com