Maryland Department of Agriculture.

A Notice of Final Action for the Maryland Invasive Plant Regulations was published in the Maryland Register on Friday, February 3. These regulations went into effect February 13. The updated regulations add a total of four new species to the Tier 1 and Tier 2 lists established by the original invasive plant regulations (April 2016). Weed risk assessments are ongoing, and additional plant species will be added to the lists through the regulatory process as they are completed and approved. These science-based assessments are the foundation for decisions regarding a plant’s invasive status in the state. Full assessment reports are available on the Maryland Invasive Plants Prevention and Control website.

Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture has confirmed the first spotted lanternfly hatch of 2020. The first instar nymph of the season was reported by a department employee while surveying for the pest in the upper northeast corner of Cecil County near the Pennsylvania border.

See additional resources on the Maryland Department of Agriculture's site for Spotted Lanternfly for up-to-date information.

Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA) expanded its spotted lanternfly quarantine.  A quarantine order first issued by the state secretary of agriculture in October 2019 for Harford and Cecil counties is still in effect, but has been expanded this year to also include: Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Howard, Kent, Montgomery and Washington counties, as well as Baltimore City. This quarantine is effective immediately, and restricts the movement of regulated articles that might contain the spotted lanternfly in any of its life stages, including egg masses, nymphs, and adults.

See additional resources on the Maryland Department of Agriculture's site for Spotted Lanternfly for up-to-date information. For questions related to the quarantine, permitting, treatment, or to report a sighting of the spotted lanternfly, especially outside of the quarantine zone, call 410-841-5920 or email DontBug.MD@maryland.gov. If you report a spotted lanternfly via email, please provide the location of the sighting and your contact information.

Kansas State University.

DOD. Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program and Environmental Security Technology Certification Program.

The Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) is DoD's environmental science and technology program, executed in partnership with DOE and EPA. The Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) is DoD’s environmental technology demonstration and validation program. The Program's goal is to identify and demonstrate cost-effective technologies that address DoD’s highest priority environmental requirements. SERDP and ESTCP fund research and demonstration projects that respond to DoD’s high-priority environmental requirements. SERDP and ESTCP harness the latest science and technology to develop and demonstrate innovative, cost-effective, and sustainable solutions to meet DoD’s environmental challenges.

University of Wisconsin - Madison.

Oklahoma State University.

University of Kentucky. College of Agriculture.

University of Wyoming. College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets.

USDA. APHIS. Plant Protection and Quarantine.

The National Detector Dog Training Center trains specially selected dogs and their handlers to safeguard America’s agricultural and natural resources from harmful pests. These dog teams carry out a range of activities, from inspecting passenger baggage, cargo, and parcels at ports of entry to detecting certain invasive species in the environment. Together, they help protect our Nation's food crops, forests, farms, and environment.

Detector canines—trained by USDA's Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) program—are ready to sniff out these damaging invasive pests to detect them early and prevent their spread. These highly trained dogs represent some of the recent successes of our Agricultural Detector Canines strategic initiative. Its goal is to expand the use of detector dogs to enhance domestic pest surveys, detect pests early, and facilitate the trade of U.S. agricultural products.

USDA. ARS. Tellus.

Farmers in the southeastern U.S. struggle with the invasive guava root-knot nematode, a microscopic roundworm, which infects and damages a variety of crops, particularly sweetpotatoes. To combat this worm, ARS researchers at the U.S. Vegetable Laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina, have identified a sweetpotato line from the agency’s expansive germplasm collection that has shown high levels of resistance to the guava root-knot nematode as well as resistance to other crop insects.

Michigan State University. Center for Integrated Plant Systems.

Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.

University of California - Riverside. Center for Invasive Species Research.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Ontario's Invading Species Awareness Program (Canada).

West Virginia Department of Natural Resources. Wildlife Resources.

Georgia Forestry Commission.

See also: Invasive Plant Control Program for more resources

University of Florida. Florida Museum of Natural History.