Waxing Nostalgic

It was about one year ago this week that the Asian Northern snakehead fish (Channa argus was discovered in a pond in Crofton, Maryland, and people all over the country were saying "What's a snakehead?" Since then, the jumping, air-breathing fish has extended its fifteen minutes of fame as the subject of a Top Ten list on Late Night with David Letterman, a book, the star of the cheesy sci-fi film "Snakehead Terror" (okay, I haven't seen it, but I'm guessing it's like the movie where the giant alligators roam the sewer system), and the inspiration for this line of clothing. The icing on the fishcake? A snakehead fillet entree at Uncle Nicky's Pit Beef and Ribs in Crofton, imported frozen of course. Read more in this article from The Capital.

Froggies gone a'croakin

"All" is a really bad word to use when discussing invasive species. But while I don't believe the sub-headline that "Recent spraying may have killed all of the noisy frogs on Kauaifor," it was great to see this informative article from the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, describing the recent application of citric acid on the island in an attempt to destroy the coqui frogs (Eleutherodactylus coqui) on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. The article features contact information (who to call if you see a coqui), audio clips, photos, and a map of coqui sightings on the island of Oahu.

Spartina: Native and Invasive

From Tide Pool comes this story about ongoing research in California to determine the cause and impact of the invasion of estuaries by salt marsh cord grass. (Spartina alterniflora). While native to the east coast of the U.S., S. alterniflora has caused major problems where it has been introduced on the west coast, and is now a fixture of Willapa and San Francisco Bays. A grant was awarded to researchers at U.C. Davis, who are also studying potential biological controls such as Prokelisia marginata (Bonus points to Tide Pool for using the scientific name.)

TLC from TNC

From the experts comes tips and tools to care for your treasured natural area and keep it weed free. The Nature Conservancy has just released an updated version of their "Weed Control Methods Handbook," with information for just about any control method you can think of, from grazing animals to herbicide application to biocontrols. The manual is only available in its current online version, which you can either browse on the web or download to your computer in Word or Acrobat format.

Mmmmmmmmm, Starthistle

From the Agricultural Research Service comes this report about a potential new biological control for yellow starthistle(Centaurea solstitialis), a spiny weed that has taken over parts of the western U.S. Scientists in Europe have found that the flea beetle Psylliodes chalcomerus will eat starthistle vegetation, an exciting development, since all currently known biocontrols eat only the flower heads. Further investigation is necessary to determine why only a specific population of the beetle has a hankering for this invasive plant.

Duck!

If you're in a boat in Louisiana, watch out for giant carp! According to this article at nola.com, researchers in that state recently discovered several bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis) swimming through the Mississippi River. One likely cause for this is the escape of several species of carp from fish farms in Mississippi and Arkansas over a decade ago. Scientists are concerned by the invasion, since carp are voracious consumers of plankton, and could leave native fish species starving on the sidelines. Fishermen are concerned because carp are known to be jumpers (see subheading "Leaping fish not so funny"), and a scared jumping carp is big enough to knock someone out of a boat.

Click Away!

The Nature Conservancy has partnered with General Mills to create several marketing campaigns for Nature Valley granola bars, focusing of course on environmental issues. Now, when you pick up a Nature Valley Chewy Trail Mix Bar, you will learn more about the Nature Conservancy's Invasive Species Initiative. As an added bonus (or if you don't care for granola bars), you can go to this site right now, click on the button, and General Mills will donate $1 to The Nature Conservancy (one click per person per day, $125,000 max). The site also has a link to "Six Easy Ways to Combat Invasives," a good tip sheet for those just finding out about the problems caused by invasive species, though I think it would be better to remind people to always cleans their boots, both before and after any hike.

Thanks to a member of the Yahoo! group ma-eppc for posting the story.