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A tiny wasp may be the solution for managing an agricultural pest causing major economic damage to fruit, vegetable, and field crops in North America and Europe. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are currently studying Trissolcus japonicus, commonly known as the samurai wasp, to see if this parasitoid wasp is the right biological control agent for reducing brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) (BMSB) populations outside of Asia. Biological control is the process of reducing or mitigating pests or pathogens by using the pest’s or pathogen’s natural enemies. The samurai wasp is a known natural enemy for the BMSB in Asia, and researchers are understanding how it behaves in non-native environments.

The environmental tolerances and potential range of the tomato pest Tuta absoluta in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia and Australia may have been underestimated according to new research co-authored by CABI scientists. All results from the scientists' research suggests with the greatest certainty that T. absoluta (also known as Phthorimaea absoluta or tomato leafminer) has further to spread globally, particularly in southern and East Asia, Australia and Central America.

The first section of the book includes information about how tourism-related infrastructure and activities promote biological invasions, including key pathways for non-native invasive species introductions. This section provides case studies of different organisms that are known to be introduced and/or promoted by tourism in different ecosystems or regions. The second section elaborates on known and potential impacts of invasive species on tourism and recreation, including how they may affect, positively or negatively, the economic revenue from tourism, tourist access, recreation, aesthetic values and tourists’ perceptions. The last section focuses on management and policy, covering aspects of how visitors perceive invasive species and their willingness to manage them, biosecurity measures to prevent invasion related to tourism, as well as potential policy options moving forward. The book draws on a number of examples across multiple taxa, landscapes and regions of the world.

Citation: Barros, A., Shackleton, R., Rew, L. J., Pizarro, C., Pauchard, A. (Eds.). (2022). Tourism, Recreation and Biological Invasions. CABI.

Invasive alien species (IAS) have become a major driver of biodiversity loss, second only to habitat fragmentation in recent decade. Europe is particularly affected by alien species, which are invading the continent an unprecedented pace. Their impact means that many of the region's rarest endemic species are on the brink of extinction and that our well-being and economies are affected. Establishing an early warning and rapid response framework for Europe become a key target. The present publication is the EEA contribution to achieving this goal.

Northern pike are native to Alaska, Canada, and much of the central and eastern continental United States. Genetic evidence reveals the role of human transport in the spread of invasive northern pike in the Columbia River basin.

Potatoes and oak trees don’t have a lot in common, but there is one thing, and it isn’t good – a fungal-like plant pathogen in the genus Phytophthora. One of the many invasive pathogens contained in this genus, P. infestans, was responsible for the Irish potato famine. Since the mid-1990s, though, Phytophthora has been attacking forest trees along the West Coast, with the pathogen P. ramorum, also known as "sudden oak death" (SOD). SOD was first detected in the San Francisco Bay Area; it has since spread throughout California. In 2001, SOD was discovered in southwest Oregon where it infected tanoaks trees. The discovery led to the formation of an interagency team that included researchers from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and Oregon State University (OSU), to develop strategies to mitigate the impacts of SOD.

This section can help you determine what items can be brought into the U.S. Bringing food and other items back from your travels could impact the health and safety of American agriculture and natural resources. For example, travelers cannot bring in most fresh fruits and vegetables because they can carry plant pests or diseases. Just one pest could devastate multiple agricultural industries.

Tribal, state and local governments will join forces at Lake Roosevelt this week to combat the spread of northern pike, recently recorded just two dams away from critical Columbia River salmon habitat. “We are at a critical moment in time where northern pike have not spread into salmon habitat,” said Kelly Susewind, director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. “If northern pike move downstream, the State of Washington will consider this an environmental emergency. We need to work together to stop northern pike.”

See also: Biocontrol Factsheets for more information on biocontrol agents

The Administration announced a new interagency conservation agreement to protect western water supplies, power generation, outdoor recreation and aquatic ecosystems by strengthening efforts to combat invasive mussels.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) among the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and six Department of the Interior bureaus focuses on boosting federal coordination, communication and collaboration to enhance the capacity of federal, state and tribal agencies to rapidly respond to discoveries of invasive mussels in western states.

For 21 consecutive years, researchers from the USDA Forest Service and partners at North Carolina State University have tracked the status and trends of forest health across the U.S.  Annual assessments of forest health are key to understanding whether year-to-year changes are part of longer-term trends.  Forests constantly change because of tree mortality and growth, weather events and climate trends, and disturbances from stressors including fire, insects, and diseases.

On September 12, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and its partners declared Monroe Township in Clermont County, Ohio, free of Asian longhorned beetle (ALB). This news came just months after APHIS declared Stonelick Township free of the beetle in March. ALB was first discovered in Monroe Township in August 2011. We think people unknowingly moved the beetle in firewood from Tate Township before anyone knew about the infestation there. Before long, adult beetles emerged and started infesting trees in Monroe. To stop this pest in its tracks, APHIS and state officials had to remove 1,186 trees in Monroe. They protected 4,614 other trees by injecting a pesticide directly into the trunks. It took 7 years, but after inspecting over 177,000 trees, APHIS and its partners finally confirmed the beetle is no longer there.

New research from the University of Minnesota’s Minnesota Invasive Terrestrial Plants and Pests Center (MITPPC) shows a possible path forward in controlling the invasive pest, the emerald ash borer (EAB), that threatens Minnesota’s nearly one billion ash trees.

In a recent study published in Fungal Biology, MITPPC researchers identified various fungi living in EAB-infested trees — a critical first step in finding fungi that may be harnessed to control the spread of EAB, and ultimately, prevent ash tree death. 

Scientists at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Ft. Worth District are researching the effects of biocontrol on an invasive tree in south Texas. The Brazilian peppertree, Schinus terebinthifolia, was introduced to the U.S. as an ornamental in the 1840s. This invasive tree causes problems where it grows because it forms dense thickets, shading out native grasses and shrubs.

This workbook contains basic information on programs in USDA that could be used to fund and support invasive species related projects. This list should be a helpful place to start a search for sources of technical and financial resources for invasive species activities but may not include all potential invasive species funding opportunities. USDA contacts for program support listed in the document are current at the time of publication. The contacts listed in the "other grant information" section can assist you in determining which opportunities may fit best with your needs.