Hunt-and-Peck

The Outdoors Blog has a post and pic of two wild boars (Sus scrofa, feral pigs) recently taken by hunters in Central New York. The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC) is also in the midst of a cooperative effort with other agencies to remove the animals from Central NY, but notes that hunters taking out single hogs from a pack will cause the rest to scatter, making rounding them up even tougher for the DEC. The post has contact into in case you've seen (or hunted) a pig in that area and want to report it.

2009 Calendars Are Here!

The 2009 Invasive Species wall calendars are here, ready to be printed, sent to you, and hung lovingly (or hatefully!) on your wall or the wall of your favorite invasive species addict. The calendar features a variety of invasive plants and animals, from purple loosestrife to the Asian shore crab. All profits cleared from the sale of these calendars will be donated by me to an environmental group doing invasive species work.

Oh, Hi O!

The Union of Concerned Scientists is out with a new report on the state of invasive species in Ohio. The report, which covers everything from what species are invading The Buckeye State to what should be done about it, complements earlier UCS products for West Virginia, Texas and Alaska.

Separation Of Perch And Lake?

FOX News, among others, has the story about a new report from the Alliance for the Great Lakes indicating that an "ecological separation" of the Great Lakes from the Mississippi River Basin is the only way to keep some invasive species out of the lakes. They even go so far as to outline several specific scenarios by which this could be achieved, at numerous locations within the Chicago Waterway system. Their plans also include a call for the permanent underwater electric carp fence to be fully activated. To read the report in full, download it here.

Barrier Grief

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has an excellent update on the status of the carp-fighting electric fence being constructed in the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal. The underwater barrier to carp entering the Great Lakes has been under construction for several years. Now the Army Corps of Engineers is set to turn it on, but at a lower voltage per square inch than would be needed to keep smaller fish from passing through. At issue is the safety of barges passing through the canal, and the risk of hurting anyone who has the misfortune of falling overboard.

Cane Toads - That's Good Eatin'???

Northern Territory News has a story about the apparent edibility of the cane toad (Bufo marinus) - "apparent" being a necessary modifier as the cane toad has long been spurned as a nasty invader so poisonous that the dogs and snakes that try to eat them soon die. But Andrew Zimmern, host of the Travel Channel show "Bizarre Foods" (and a man lucky enough to travel with his own chef) has tasted the legs of these bad toads, and pronounced them good. Or at least, he didn't die or get sick, and neither did the members of the environmental group FrogWatch who participated in the tasting. The only details the article provides about how to avoid ingesting the cane toad's poison is a mention of how the chef "skinned the legs and avoided toxins when preparing them."

On a related note, the ISW is proud to be associated with the Terrapin Procrastination blog, which posted this gem of a cane toad photo yesterday:

In America, the frogs drink Budweiser. In Australia, the invasive cane toads apparently drink Foster's.

P.S. - Don't be taking this as an endorsement, a recommendation, or any other kind of encouragement for you to go out and try to eat a known poisonous animal. The ISW wants you to be healthy and happy, so if you have a hankering for invasive amphibian legs, stick with the non-poisonous kind (North American bullfrog, Rana catesbaeiana). :-)