The term wool alien is used for any

plant species Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Sometimes b ...

whose occurrence at a particular site is due to transportation there as a result of the making of

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

products. The most common source of wool aliens is when a plant, seed, or

bur A bur (also spelled burr) is a seed or dry fruit or infructescence that has hooks or teeth. The main function of the bur is to spread the seeds of the bur plant, often through epizoochory. The hooks of the bur are used to catch on to for exa ...

attaches to the wool of a sheep or other wool-producing animal prior to

shearing Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a '' shearer''. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year (a sheep may be said to have been "shorn" or ...

. After the animal is shorn and the raw wool is transported to a refinery mill, the impurities are discarded along with the attached seed, which then successfully germinates. Wool aliens are typically found on waste ground near woollen mills. Wool cleanings have also been used as soil conditioners in orchards and fields, which may also contain wool alien species. Stork's-bills (''

Erodium ''Erodium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the botanical family Geraniaceae. The genus includes about 60 species, native to North Africa, Indomalaya, the Middle East, and Australia. They are perennials, annuals, or subshrubs, with five-petal ...

'') are particularly prone to appearing as wool aliens in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

References

Plants and humans Seeds Wool industry {{botany-stub