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Prepared for the Oregon Invasive Species Council.

Although the scientific literature has relatively few publications on the subject, the expanding distribution of ticks and their associated disease-causing pathogens are increasingly shown to be facilitated by the presence of certain invasive plant species, particularly plant understory and transition-zone species. Invasive species have been found to contribute to the spread and survival of ticks, hosts, and various disease-causing pathogens. For those species that have been investigated, several invasive plant species such as Japanese honeysuckle and barberry have been definitively shown to harbor and enhance tick, host, and pathogen populations by enhancing microhabitat and survival. Additionally, non-native tick species such as Asian longhorn tick have been introduced and potentially new invasive tick-borne pathogens or hosts can, and likely will, be introduced in the future. For more publications, see ISAC White Papers.

See also: Wildland Weeds Articles for more resources

The goal of this report is to capture the current state of knowledge on the use of fire as a tool to manage invasive plants in wildlands. By providing a more thorough source of information on this topic, we hope this review facilitates improved decision making when considering the use of prescribed burning for the management of invasive plants.

The Washington Invasive Species Council, state agencies and researchers are calling for a census in May to help determine the location of Scotch broom throughout the state. "We need everyone's help to size up the problem," said Justin Bush, executive coordinator of the Washington Invasive Species Council. "Without baseline information about the location and population size, we don’t have enough details to determine solutions. The information from the census will help us set short- and long-term action plans." Yellow flowered, Scotch broom is hard to miss when blooming. It can be found in 30 of Washington's 39 counties [PDF, 282 KB]. While known to be spread across the state, specific locations and patch sizes are not well documented, leading to the council's call for a month-long census.

"We're asking people to send us information from their neighborhoods," Bush said. "The information can be transmitted easily to the council by using the Washington Invasives mobile app or by visiting Report a Sighting. Sightings should include a photograph of the plant that shows enough detail that the plant can be verified by an expert. A description of the size of the patch is also helpful, such as whether the patch is the size of a motorcycle, a car, a school bus or multiple school buses. Photographs also can be shared with the council on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter by using the hashtags #TheGreatScotchBroomCensus and #ScotchBroom2020Census."

Pests looking to make their homes in Washington’s urban forests may now face a stronger defense, thanks to a new resource released this this month by the state’s Invasive Species Council. The Washington State Urban Forest Pest Readiness Playbook, published in partnership with the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR), contains guidelines that towns, cities, counties and urban forestry programs can follow to address the threat of forest pests, which are estimated to cost local governments across the country an estimated $1.7 billion each year. The playbook contains self-assessments and recommended actions that communities can use to prepare for pest outbreaks. Support and funding for this effort came from 2018 Farm Bill Section 10007 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Plant Health Inspection Service Plant Protection and Quarantine.

Wavyleaf basketgrass is a new exotic grass rapidly moving into forests and meadows in Virginia and Maryland. The Piedmont Environmental Council is part of a Task Force committed to stopping this plant before it forms a thick carpet on our forest floors, crowding out native plants. If you think you spot wavyleaf basketgrass, please report your sighting.

Provides a collation of best available research literature, research gaps, and a summary of published researchfor wildland fire and invasive species issues. NISC staff searched Google Scholar, USGS publications warehouse, USDA, FS TreeSearch, and AGRICOLA using keywords “invasive species”, “invasive species and fire”, “invasive species and wildfire” from 2000 to 2024. Most of the existing research explores the relationship between invasive plants, particularly grass species, and wildfire risk, fire regimes, impacts to native plant communities, and loss of wildlife habitats. These are living documents and will be updated on a regular basis.