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This summer, the Vermont Lakes and Ponds Program is seeking volunteers to help monitor and collect information about lakes and ponds in the state. With over 800 lakes and ponds, volunteers are key to the success of the program’s lake monitoring efforts. Volunteers can be found statewide greeting lake visitors, inspecting boats, collecting water samples, tracking algal or cyanobacteria blooms, reporting aquatic invasive species, and more. For general information, interested parties are welcome to visit the volunteer webpage.

Tests by the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa have confirmed the presence of Asian, or longhorn tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, in Pennsylvania. An invasive species that congregates in large numbers and can cause anemia in livestock, the tick was discovered on a wild deer in Centre County. It is known to carry several diseases that infect hogs and cattle in Asia. So far, ticks examined in the U.S. do not carry any infectious pathogens. Native to East and Central Asia, the tick was originally identified in the U.S. in New Jersey, where it was found in large numbers in sheep in Mercer County in 2017. It has also been found in Arkansas, New Jersey, New York, West Virginia and Virginia.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack issued a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) proclamation in recognition and support of National Pollinator Week -- June 20–26, 2022. Pollinator species, such as bees, other insects, birds, and bats play a critical role in producing more than 100 crops grown in the United States. Honey bee pollination alone adds more than $18 billion in value to agricultural crops annually.

USDA also released its Annual Strategic Pollinator Priorities Report: 2022 [PDF, 1.8 MB] that outlines USDA pollinator research and programmatic priorities for the coming year.

Little fire ants (LFA) may be tiny, but they pack a powerful sting. Native to South America, these speck-sized invaders have hitchhiked across the Pacific, hidden in imported goods, establishing new populations in islands like Hawai'i. Much smaller than the average ant, LFA are about as long as a penny is thick. Little fire ants may have reached our shores, but we can't treat it like "just another ant." LFA are considered one of the World's 100 Worst Invasive Species (IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group), because of their ability to reach very high numbers, to the point where people and animals can't avoid stings. It's up to each of us to Spot The Ant and Stop the Ant. Report little fire ants today.
See also: October is "Stop the Ant Month": Help Find the Hidden Ants of Hawai'i (Sep 29, 2023)

Collaborative study determines effective messengers, language choices, and modes of delivery for disseminating educational information on how firewood choices can impact forest health. A recent study done in collaboration between The Nature Conservancy’s Don’t Move Firewood campaign and researchers from Clemson University showed that most people in the U.S. don’t know firewood can harbor invasive forest insects and diseases, but when targeted education materials are used effectively, they can learn and are likely to change their behavior.

In a study recently published in the journal Ecology, "Long-term drought promotes invasive species by reducing wildfire severity," University of California, Irvine scientists uncover the intricate dance between drought, wildfires and invasive species in Southern California’s coastal sage scrub ecosystems.  Titled “Long-term drought promotes invasive species by reducing wildfire severity,” the research, led by Sarah Kimball, Ph.D., director of the Center for Environmental Biology at UCI, sheds light on the critical interplay of these factors and its profound implications for ecosystem health.

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently published a pair of papers that, together, provide the most detailed maps to date of how 144 common invasive plants species will react to 2º C of climate change in the eastern U.S., as well as the role that garden centers currently play in seeding future invasions. Together, the papers, published in Diversity and Distributions and BioScience, and the publicly available maps, which track species at the county level, promise to give invasive species managers in the U.S. the tools they need to proactively coordinate their management efforts and adapt now for tomorrow’s warmer climate.

In a first-of-its-kind study for North America, scientists accumulated a list of potential invasive species for Florida, and researchers deemed 40 pose the greatest threat. A team of experts, led by University of Florida scientists, evaluated terrestrial, aquatic and marine species with characteristics that make them particularly adept at invasion. Their list includes 460 vertebrates, invertebrates, algae and plants.

The study, "Identifying invasive species threats, pathways, and impacts to improve biosecurity," was funded by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the UF/IFAS Dean for Research. It is published in the journal Ecosphere.

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) virus spreads much more aggressively in pigs than previous research suggests, according to a new study by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists. The study, recently published in Scientific Reports, shows that pigs infected with the FMD virus were highly contagious to other pigs just 24 hours after infection—long before showing any clinical signs of infection such as fever and blisters. Foot-and-mouth disease continues to be the most important foreign disease of livestock worldwide, said Jonathan Arzt, lead investigator and veterinary medical officer with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS). Although the United States has not had an FMD outbreak since 1929, this highly contagious viral disease, which is sometimes fatal, is still considered a serious threat to U.S. agriculture.

In an effort to monitor invasive northern snakeheads in the Chesapeake Bay and Blackwater River, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announces a new tagging program in conjunction with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Both agencies are placing yellow or blue tags on up to 500 northern snakeheads. Each tagged northern snakehead caught and harvested from now until 2024 could be rewarded with a gift card of $10 or $200 depending on the tag.

In order to qualify, the harvester must report the tag number to USFWS at 800-448-8322, and is asked to take a picture of their harvested and tagged northern snakehead. Only harvested northern snakeheads with reported tags will qualify for gift cards.

ARS works with foreign scientists to prevent overseas diseases from spreading to the United States. This collaboration specifically targets research that cannot be conducted in the U.S., either because a disease does not exist here or the expertise in a pathogen resides overseas. Of particular concern are emerging diseases that may spread from animals to infect humans.

USDA NIFA research investment in Texas A&M AgriLife leads to breakthrough in fighting agricultural plant diseases. Researchers have made a discovery that will help combat fastidious pathogens, which cost U.S. agriculture alone billions of dollars annually.

New website delivers spectacular images and details of some of the world's bees. ARS scientists need your help in monitoring and protecting our important pollinators. The Exotic Bee ID website, designed and developed as a screening aid to support identification of non-native bees, offers spectacular views of some of our most important and not so important pollinators with stunning clarity. Watch the  video to learn more about this new tool.

Exotic Bee ID was designed and developed as an interactive screening aid to help those that monitor and intercept non-native bees in the U.S. Theintention is to help reduce the loss of valuable native pollinators through early detection of possible invasives.

How can an insect that is smaller than a penny cause so much ecological, economic, and cultural devastation? The emerald ash borer, an invasive beetle native to Asia, is one of the most destructive invasive species in North America. These tiny pests killed tens of millions of ash trees in the northeast – and continue to this day.

In Maine, a coalition of Indigenous and non-Indigenous researchers, tribal members, state and federal foresters, conservation groups, and local communities have been working for the past twenty years to prepare for the onset of emerald ash borer in northeastern forests. The group, called the Ash Protection Collaboration Across Wabanakik, is focused on identifying research-informed strategies to protect the future of ash trees.

The arid and semiarid Great Basin of the western United States comprises parts of California, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, and Oregon and can variously be described by its hydrology, topography, or biology. Biologically, the area has been defined historically by the native sagebrush and shrubs that thrive in the dry valleys of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountains. But, as a recent study undertaken by researchers at the University of Montana and the Department of Agriculture notes, these native plant communities are rapidly being colonized by nonnative annual grasses like cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum), red brome (B. rubens), and medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae) to the detriment of wildlife and humans.

USDA Forest Service scientists are exploring the impacts of invasive species in forests and rangelands of the United States and developing early intervention strategies that land managers can take as well as strategies for restoring impacted landscapes.

While ballast water has been a major way species have entered the Great Lakes, it hasn't been the only way.

The fungus behind white-nose syndrome, a disease that has devastated bat populations in North America, may have an Achilles' heel: UV light, according to a study conducted by the Forest Service and its partners.

"White-nose syndrome is the single biggest threat to many North American bat species and one of the most pressing conservation challenges facing America’s wildlife today. Investing in defeating WNS must be a priority, and the results from this study and contributing research give us hope that we can develop the tools to more effectively manage the fungus that causes the disease."

Nonnative tree species are gaining a foothold in forest ecosystems. These trees compete with native species for resources, sunlight, and space. Tree of heaven and Chinese tallow tree are the most invasive tree species in the South, according to a recent study which uses Forest Inventory & Analysis data to create an indicator of nonnative tree regeneration success and can help prioritize the species and locations for treatment. 

New techniques use radiation to eliminate dangerous mosquitoes. The Aedes aegypti mosquito is notorious for spreading dengue virus, yellow fever virus, chikungunya virus, and Zika virus, among other ailments. While many mosquitoes do not feed on people, or even domestic animals, this mosquito targets humans causing disease to millions of people throughout the world. ARS researchers with scientists from the University of Florida have developed a new technique for using radiation to control mosquito populations.