History Main / AlienKudzu

* Pops up in ''DeadSpace'' - though it's never clarified exactly how it happens or where it came from, ''something'' starts growing inside the ship, gradually transforming the atmosphere into something toxic for humans... even inside a hermetically-sealed starship, it does a lot of damage and spreads widely. On a planet, it would get out of control in short order and swallow up everything. A scientist's log specifically describes it as a "habitat adjuster" or something like that... a biological terraforming engine, in other words.

* H.G. Wells's 1898 novel ''TheWarOfTheWorlds'' is the story of a [[AlienInvasion Martian invasion]] of Earth. As an UrExample of this trope, the invasion sees the Red Weed spread from Mars to Earth via the Martian's ships. Growing explosively, the Red Weed annihilates other plants and chokes rivers. It increases the sense of the Earth being overwhelmed, acting as a parallel for the Martians crushing human civilization and its military. The image was used symbolically on the 2005 movie [[http://images.allmoviephoto.com/2005_War_of_the_Worlds/2005_war_of_the_world_poster_001.jpg poster]].

[[AC:{{Film}}]]
* The Triffids as presented in the 1962 film of ''TheDayOfTheTriffids'' may count, as an invasive alien species. The book and other adaptations present them as genetically-modified organisms instead of aliens.

* In ''StarshipTroopers'', the alien kudzu is from Earth; on Sanctuary, where there is almost no radiation, there is a very slow rate of mutation, so the native flora and fauna are simply overrun by Earth plants and animals.

* PandorasStar has the Primes flood the local lakes and rivers of the planets they invade with a single celled organism that is essential to their reproduction. The pollution of the waters like this kills off most of the other life in them.

** ''{{Planescape}}'' features razorvine, growing mostly on [[{{Hell}} Lower Planes]], but eagerly acclimatizing anywhere. Its stem is a living razor wire, growing twisted and under tension and thus lashing around if cut. Some try to use it as a security measure, but it's a virulent weed and hard to eradicate. In some places any sod barmy enough to bring in and plant cuttings can be summarily executed. Also, Egarus, a fungus from Abyss which was accidentally introduced on a Prime world, and after discovering that it grows everywhere and they can't even KillItWithFire natives managed to kick it out to the Quasiplane of Vacuum... and it survives ''there''. Egarus quietly destroys (as in, 'disintegrate') all sorts of stuff around when it can find anything.

* One of the way of terraforming planets in [[OrionsArm Orion's Arm]] is to release plants like this on the surface where they will progressively alter the environment to suit human life.

* In HarryTurtledove's ''{{Worldwar}}'' series, after humanity and the Race achieve an uneasy peace, the Race starts importing flora and fauna from their homeworld, causing ecological damage to the regions of Earth they occupy. In the final book, some white mice get (accidentally) released on the Race's homeworld and start proliferating; the Race throws a fit, [[MoralMyopia completely ignoring the hypocricy]].

* The GalaxyRangers episode "Marshmallow Trees" had shades of this, but by accident. The Kiwi ambassador was trying to share his planet's FantasticFruitsAndVegetables with a human colony in the form of the titular trees. Unfortunately, while the trees were perfectly tested on Kirwin, the conditions of the colony world caused them to grow out of control.

[[AC:WebComics]]
* [[http://www.pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF248-Transmission.jpg This]] PerryBibleFellowship strip shows one more surprisingly clingy and adaptable lifeform in this role.

** ''{{Planescape}}'' features razorvine, growing mostly on [[{{Hell}} Lower Planes]], but eagerly acclimatizing anywhere. Its stem is a living razor wire, growing twisted and under tension and thus lashing around if cut. Some try to use it as a security measure, but it's a virulent weed and hard to eradicate. In some places any sod barmy enough to bring in and plant cuttings can be summarily executed. Also, Egarus, a fungus from Abyss which was accidentally introduced on a Prime world, and after discovering that it grows everywhere and they can't even KillItWithFire natives managed to kick it out to the Quasiplane of Vacuum. It quietly destroys (as in, disintegrate) stuff around if it can find anything.
** [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Infinity Vine]] in ''{{Spelljammer}}''. A leafless plant that ''very'' quickly multiplies its mass until it covers everything that got light and air with 10' thick layer (not enough light beyond that). Of course, if it's a ship and the extra mass is more than its power source can pull, it's stuck for good. The vine is easily destroyed, but regrows, and is immune to all diseases and poisons. Due to this magical metabolism it vanishes just as fast on planets and instantly dries up in the Flow--the only reason why the whole Prime Material Plane isn't buried under 10 feet of green ropes.

[[AC:WebComics]]
* [[http://www.pbfcomics.com/?cid=PBF248-Transmission.jpg This]] PerryBibleFellowship strip.

* ''{{Planescape}}'' features razorvine, growing mostly on [[{{Hell}} Lower Planes]], but eagerly acclimatizing anywhere. Its stem is a living razor wire, growing twisted and under tension and thus lashing around if cut. Some try to use it as a security measure, but it's a virulent weed and hard to eradicate. In some places any sod barmy enough to bring in and plant cuttings can be summarily executed.
* [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Infinity Vine]] in ''{{Spelljammer}}''. A leafless plant that ''very'' quickly multiplies its mass until it covers everything that got light and air with 10' thick layer (not enough light beyond that). Of course, if it's a ship and the extra mass is more than its power source can pull, it's stuck for good. The vine is easily destroyed, but regrows, and is immune to all diseases and poisons. Due to this magical metabolism it vanishes just as fast on planets and instantly dries up in the Flow--the only reason why the whole Prime Material Plane isn't buried under 10 feet of green ropes.

* H.G. Wells's 1898 novel ''TheWarOfTheWorlds'' is the story of a [[AlienInvasion Martian invasion]] of Earth. As an UrExample of this trope, the invasion sees the Red Weed spread from Mars to Earth via the Martian's ships. Growing explosively, the Red Weed annihilates other plants and chokes rivers. It increases the sense of the Earth being overwhelmed, acting as a parallels for the Martians crushing human civilization and its military. The image was used symbolically on the 2005 movie [[http://images.allmoviephoto.com/2005_War_of_the_Worlds/2005_war_of_the_world_poster_001.jpg poster]].

* In StarshipTroopers, the alien kudzu is from Earth; on Sanctuary, where there is almost no radiation, there is a very slow rate of mutation, so the native flora and fauna are simply overrun by Earth plants and animals.

* Flood biomass in ''{{Halo}}''.

* The Triffids as presented in the 1962 film of ''TheDayOfTheTriffids'' may count, as an invasive alien apecies. The book and other adaptations present them as genetically-modified organisms instead of aliens.

* The Biomass in ''[[UFOAfterblank UFO: Aftermath]]''

** Doesn't quite fit, since it, like the Martians, soon succumbs to earth-born diseases.