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What is the National Invasive Species Information Center (NISIC)?

Provides information about the National Invasive Species Information Center (NISIC) and our Web site — InvasivespeciesInfo.gov.


The National Invasive Species Information Center (NISIC) was established in 2005 at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA's) National Agricultural Library (NAL) to meet the information needs of users, including the National Invasive Species Council (Council or NISC). NAL is the nation’s primary resource for agricultural information and is one of five national libraries in the U.S. NAL, also serves as the Library of the USDA. The library facilitates the creation of agricultural knowledge through the acquisition, curation, and dissemination of the information needed to solve agricultural challenges today and in the future.

InvasivespeciesInfo.gov is managed by NISIC at NAL. This site uniquely serves as an “all-taxa” portal for invasive species information and serves as a reference and educational gateway to information, organizations, and services about invasive species.

The site was launched in 2005, built largely on the general content from the original Invasivespecies.gov Web site, which was formerly managed and hosted by NAL. NISIC grew out of NAL's leadership in the development of the initial Invasivespecies.gov Web site for the Council. NISIC has limited staff resources (one person) and is unable to provide extensive information on all species considered to be invasive.

In June 2000, Invasivespecies.gov was initially launched as a joint collaboration between NAL, the U.S. Geological Survey's National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII), and the Council. The site has undergone several redesign efforts to enhance access to the growth of invasive species information. NISIC continued to host the Council's Web site until August 2009, when the Council launched their independent site.

Invasivespecies.gov is managed by the staff of the National Invasive Species Council to meet the administrative, communication, and facilitation needs specifically related to the business and activity of the Council. Executive Order 13112 established the Council in 1999.

The specific focus of the Council is to ensure that Federal agency activities concerning invasive species are coordinated, complementary, cost-efficient, and effective. The Council is also responsible for producing an Annual Work Plan. For questions regarding the Council, please see National Invasive Species Council - Contact Us.