Study finds invasive plants to be widespread in forests

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Bob Berwyn

New mapping to help resource managers plan prevention and response

Non-native grasses have altered the wildfire regime across parts of the High Plains. Bob Berwyn photo.

Non-native grasses have altered the wildfire regime across parts of the High Plains.

By Summit VoiceFRISCO — Invasive species may be much more common than we think, according to a new U.S. Forest Service study that documented non-native species in two-thirds of forest plots inventoried in the Northeast and Midwest. The study across two dozen states from North Dakota to Maine can help land managers pinpoint areas on the landscape where invasive plants might take root.

“We found two-thirds of more than 1,300 plots from our annual forest inventory had at least one introduced species, but this also means that one-third of the plots had no introduced species,” said Beth Schulz, a research ecologist at the Pacific Northwest Research Station who led the study. “By describing forest stands with few or no introduced species, we help managers focus on areas where early detection and rapid response can be most effective to slow the spread of introduced and potentially invasive plant species.”

Nonnative, or introduced, plants are those species growing in areas where they are not normally found. Whether they were intentionally released or escaped cultivation, nonnative plants ultimately can become invasive, displacing native species, degrading habitat, and altering critical ecosystem functions. (more…)

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Better maps to help manage invasive species threats

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Bob Berwyn
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Invasive zebra mussels are threatening aquatic ecosystems. Photo courtesy U.S. Geological Survey.

New modeling takes human factor into account

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — British scientists have fine-tuned invasive species predictions by adding the human factor into the biological models often used to forecast the spread of non-native pests.

Based on their new maps, Dr. Bellinda Gallardo and Dr. David Aldridge from the University of Cambridge, identified a ‘dirty dozen’ — a group of high-risk invasive aquatic plants and animals. Some, like the killer shrimp (Dikerogammarus villosus) and the bloody red mysid (Hemimysis anomala) are already in UK but have yet to spread. Others, such as the Asian clam (Corbicula fluminalis) and the marmokrebs, a crayfish (Procambarus fallax) may not yet have arrived.

Traditional species distribution models are mostly based on environmental conditions such as temperature and rainfall. The Cambridge researchers have upped the accuracy of the models by including  factors such as population density, land-use and proximity to ports. (more…)

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Study seeks to ID ocean ecosystem tipping points

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

A Pacific kelp forest. Photo courtesy NOAA.

UC Santa Barbara researchers to try and establish early warning systems

By Summit Voice

FRISCO — Marine researchers with UC Santa Barbara say they want to keep better tabs on potential ecosystem tipping points. By using case studies, they hope to develop a set of early warning indicators and management tools that may help to predict, and even prevent, threatened systems from falling off the precipice.

“We know that thresholds in marine ecosystems can lead to rapid changes in their ability to support activities and services that people value, but we seldom have information about how human actions are affecting these things, and how close we might be to those tipping points,” said Carrie Kappel, associate project scientist and lead principal investigator on the study. (more…)

Filed under: biodiversity, endangered species, Environment, invasive species, Marine biology, ocean conservation | Tagged: , , , , | 2 Comments »

Environment: Invasive fungus killing old-growth beech forests in Michigan’s Pictured Rocks National Seashore

Posted on September 23, 2012 by Bob Berwyn

Park Service has few management options available

National Park Service crews cut a dead beech tree at Pictured Rocks National Seashore. Photo courtesy National Park Service.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — The spread of a tree-killing fungus in Michigan’s Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore is a textbook example of how invasive species can permanently alter homegrown ecosystems.

As the beech bark disease spreads (transmitted by insects), it’s expected to kill thousands of beech trees. According to National Park Service scientists, the species will survive, but the aftermath forests are expected to be perpetually young thickets of beech that do not play the same ecological role as maturing and mature forests. (more…)

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