Items
of Interest:
Regulation
of Invasive Plants in Maryland
- Comments due by Dec 17, 2012 (Nov
26, 2012)
Invasive Notes Weblog.
These regulations outline the risk assessment
protocol and the rules concerning plants
that are ultimately ranked as Tier 1 or Tier
2 invaders.
No plants have yet been assessed -- this
is NOT the plant list, but the regulations
that will apply to them when they are assessed.
Destructive
Emerald Ash Borer Discovered in Montgomery
County (Jun 29, 2012)
Maryland Department of Agriculture.
The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA)
has detected the invasive, highly destructive emerald
ash borer (EAB)
beetle in Montgomery County – the seventh
county in the state to have a positive identification
of the pest. Last summer, MDA concluded that
the pest was likely present throughout the
western shore and imposed a quarantine on
all 14 counties west of the Chesapeake Bay
and Susquehanna River, making it illegal
to move ash products to the Eastern Shore.
State Highway Administration Pesters Invasive Species with Beneficial Insects (Jun 29, 2012)
Maryland Department of Transportation.
SHA, along with the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), is enlisting the help of the mile-a-minute weevil and the purple loosestrife beetle in the epic struggle to control invasive plant species that pose a threat to wetlands, native vegetation and wildlife habitat. Similar programs, which have been successful in New York, Delaware and other states, are using greener methods to control invasive plant species. In Maryland, SHA and MDA have used insects for the biological control of thistle, another invasive weed species.
Didymo Infests Third Maryland Trout Stream (May 7, 2012)
Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources' (DNR) biologists confirmed the presence of didymo, an invasive algae known to anglers as rock snot or boulder boogers, in Big Hunting Creek in Frederick County. DNR urges all anglers to do their part in helping to stop the spread of didymo to other trout waters. Anglers should remove mud and debris from their boots before entering and soon after leaving streams and use wader wash stations to clean their boots in saltwater before heading off to another body of water. If a wader wash station isn’t available or the wash pan of salt water is empty, anglers should disinfect their boots at home. Letting boots and gear dry thoroughly for at least 5 days between fishing trip will also kill didymo cells. DNR also reminds anglers that felt-soled boots were banned in all Maryland waters effective March 22, 2011, to protect and preserve wildlife and their habitats.
Snakehead Invaders Spread to the Rhode (Jul 19, 2011)
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Shorelines.
Scientists have discovered a northern snakehead in Anne Arundel County. Biologists from the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center were taking annual fish samples last week when they found the 23-inch egg-bearing snakehead in the Rhode River. Scientists are exploring whether low salinity levels in the Chesapeake Bay allowed the snakehead to travel to Rhode River.
Citizen
Science: New Website Launched Making it
Easier to Report Sightings of Chinese Mitten
Crabs (May 2011)
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center.
Are you a crabber, waterman, or concerned
citizen? We need your help to detect and
assess the status of Chinese Mitten Crabs
along the Atlantic and the Gulf Coasts. Recently
a new website, Mitten
Crab Watch, has been launched to provide
information on the invasion of the mitten
crab and to allow users to more easily report
catches.
Maryland
Invasive Plant Bill Set to Become Law (Apr 6, 2011)
Anacostia Watershed Society.
The invasive
plant bill (HB 831) will deal
with the the nursery trade of invasive
plant species in the state of Maryland. It
will employ a comprehensive science-based
risk assessment protocol that will generate
a tiered list of the state’s invasive
plants. It
will ban the most highly invasive species
and includes a provision that will require
retailers to post signs, warning consumers
of the environmental hazards of these plants.
This bill is a much needed measure to address
and contribute to curbing the invasive
plant species problem from its main root
cause without affecting the horticultural
industry or the state's budget.
Hopefully it will serve as a model for
other states in the country.
Report
Invasive Plant Pest in Maryland
Maryland Department of Agriculture.
PLEASE
CALL: 410.841.5920
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