Category: Invasive species

Great Lakes, Invasive species

People dumped their pets into lakes, officials say. Now football-size goldfish are taking over.

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Read the full story in the Washington Post.

The invasion begins innocently enough: A goldfish paddles the secluded waters of an at-home aquarium, minding its own business, disturbing no native habitats.

The real trouble comes later, when the human who put it there decides it’s time for a change. Not wanting to hurt the fish, but not wanting to keep it either, the pet’s owner decides to release it into a local lake, pond or waterway. That decision, experts say, is well-meaning but misguided — and potentially harmful.

Officials in Burnsville, a city about 15 miles south of Minneapolis, demonstrated why late last week, when they shared photographs of several massive goldfish that were recovered from a local lake. The discarded pets can swell and wreak havoc, the city warned.

Illinois, Invasive species

Illinois researchers using image recognition to manage invasive asian carp

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Read the full story at Illinois Newsroom.

Fish and wildlife researchers are testing new image recognition technology on the Illinois River to manage invasive carp species.

Agriculture, Invasive species, Publications

UC launches WeedCUT, a new online tool to manage invasive weeds in wildlands without herbicides

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Read the full story from the University of California.

California has abundant wildlands — forests, rangeland, open areas, wildlife refuges and national, state, and local parks — that need protection from invasive plants. Invasive plants affect all Californians by increasing wildfire potential; reducing water resources; accelerating erosion and flooding; threatening wildlife; degrading range, crop and timberland; and diminishing outdoor recreation opportunities. According to the California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC), more than 200 identified plant species harm California’s wildlands.

Cal-IPC and the University of California Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM), with funding from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) Alliance Grants Program, developed two resources that provide land managers access to the latest information on non-herbicide practices for managing weeds in wildlands. Best Management Practices for Non-Chemical Weed Control is a free downloadable manual. The same information has been incorporated into an interactive online tool called WeedCUT (Weed Control User Tool: weedcut.ipm.ucanr.edu).

Invasive species, Plastics

Plastic rafting: the invasive species hitching a ride on ocean litter

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Read the full story in The Guardian.

There is now so much ocean plastic that it has become a route for invasive species, threatening native animals with extinction

Illinois, Invasive species

The company behind the viral fish tube — or salmon cannon — has a new project: Keeping Asian carp out of Lake Michigan using facial recognition technology

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Read the full story in the Chicago Tribune.

There may come a day on the Illinois River when a fish swims up a chute, slides through a scanner, and, after being recognized as a feared silver carp, is sorted and removed, eventually ending up in a carp burger on your dinner plate.

Keeping invasive carp out of the Great Lakes has involved a series of less-than-silver bullets — from commercial fishing to carbon dioxide experiments to the forthcoming Brandon Road barriers near Joliet from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Now, fish recognition is entering the fray.

Invasive species

The bright side of the green crab

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Read the full story in Hakai Magazine.

In Nova Scotia, a suite of innovative projects has creatively met this invasive species head on.

Invasive species, Sustainable design

Students transform invasive mussels into glass, and the results are beautiful

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Read the full story at Fast Company.

How three students harnessed design to turn a harmful invasive species into a practical solution.

Invasive species

The battle to control America’s ‘most destructive’ species: feral pigs

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Read the full story in National Geographic.

These “ecological zombies” will eat almost anything and can live almost anywhere.

Invasive species, Publications

Invasive species often start as undetected “sleeper populations”

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Read the full story from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

When an invasive species overruns a new ecosystem, it is often assumed that the invader recently arrived at its new home and rapidly took over. But a new report in the journal BioScience finds that many new arrivals aren’t nearly as impatient as this narrative implies.

Invasive species

Florida restricting sales of pythons and lizards amid fears of invasive species

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Read the full story in the Tampa Bay Times.

Florida is restricting the possession and private breeding of certain exotic animals, including Burmese pythons, green iguanas and tegu lizards, citing concerns about invasive species overrunning the state. The move comes in the face of fervent opposition from reptile enthusiasts and dealers.

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