ARS News has a short article about a joint project between the ARS and Cornell University to develop biological controls for black swallow-wort (Cynanchum louiseae) and pale swallow-wort (C. rossicum). In it, they point out that swallow-worts (also known as dog-strangling vines, though, to my knowledge, no canine has died at the leaves of these nasty invasives :-) ) are not only invading natural areas, but they are also considered agricultural threats by soybean and corn farmers. As this article notes, there are also problems with monarch butterflies fruitlessly laying their eggs on swallow-wort vines. If you click through to the profiles for the PIs on the project, you can get a full description of the research being done and links to related abstracts.
Thanks to Mr Sun! for rocking the ISW's planetary system by sending in a link to this story.
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