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Montana Invasive Species March Bulletin

Montana Department of Natural Resources & Conservation sent this bulletin at 03/25/2024 12:50 PM MDT

March 25, 2024

AIS Grant Hearing April 11th in Helena

This year there were a total of 15 grant applicants with the requesting amount of $437,961. Funding in the amount of $250,772.00 for FY24 was appropriated by the legislature. DNRC may incur up to 10% of the yearly appropriation for administration of the program.

See agenda here...

MISC Quarterly Meeting - April 17th in Helena

The Montana Invasive Species Council (MISC) will hold its next council meeting on Wednesday, April 17th, at the Montana State Capitol Building. The meeting will run from 8:20 am - 3:10 pm.

See agenda here...

Antarctica’s Looming Threat

Ocean waters warmed by climate change could open the door for marine invasive species in one of the world’s most pristine ecosystems.

Hundreds of scientists journey to Antarctica each year to work in the continent’s 77 research stations, used by some 30 countries. Many are there to study how the unique ecology and endemic wildlife in this faraway land is changing with human pressures like climate change.

Continue Reading...

Invasive Species Awareness Week in Montana

National Invasive Species Awareness Week was February 26th to March 3rd

The Montana Invasive Species Council had an agenda everyday of the week, view bulletins here.
KRTV News in Great Falls interviewed Josh Wagnor (Dept. of Ag) and Liz Lodman (MISC) about the danger of noxious weed, feral swine and dumping aquarium pets in waterways. Watch interview here...

'Do our part': Volunteers gather at Two Moon Park in Billings to protect natural area.

KTVQ News in Billings did a story with Megan Hoyer, (Yellowstone County Weeds education specialist) about the community effort to remove Russian olive and common buckthorn from the Billings Two Moon Park.

Read here...

Fighting a Feral Hog Foothold

Feral swine are becoming notorious. The problem pigs damage crops, landscapes, wildlife — you name it. And once they have a foothold, they are a stubborn critter to control. Click on the podcast as State Veterinarian Dr. Tahnee Szymanski, and MSU Assistant Professor Dr. Jared Beaver discuss state efforts to educate the public and prevent the invasive species from making it’s way to Montana from Canada, or the southern U.S.

Listen here...

FWP gearing up for a new watercraft inspection station season.

Several watercraft inspection stations begin operation in early March to check snowbird boat traffic returning from mussel-positive areas such as Lakes Mead and Havasu. Boat owners coming to Montana must have their vessel inspected for aquatic invasive species (AIS) at a Montana watercraft inspection station prior to launch.
Watercraft inspection stations are Montana’s first line of defense to prevent the movement of AIS which can have devastating impacts on Montana waterways.
Boat owners should ensure their watercraft, trailers and gear are clean, drained and dry before transporting and need to be aware of Montana’s inspection rules:
- All watercraft coming into Montana from out of state must be inspected prior to launching.
- All watercraft traveling west across the Continental Divide into the Columbia River Basin must be inspected prior to launching.
- Anyone transporting watercraft must stop at all open watercraft inspection stations they encounter.
- And all boaters are reminded to always clean drain and dry their boat, live wells, anchors, boots and gear when leaving the water.

Invasive Species Action Network

looking to hire an Outreach Coordinator

More information here...

NAISMA Annual Conference – Call for Presenters

The 2024 North American Invasive Species Management Association (NAISMA) Annual Conference, co-hosted with the Montana Invasive Species Council.

Presentation Topics:

We welcome presentations that focus on a wide range of topics related to invasive species management, including but not limited to:

Innovative control and eradication strategies
Biodiversity conservation in the face of invasive species
Climate change impacts on invasive species dynamics
Community engagement, education, and outreach initiatives
Case studies and success stories in invasive species management

Submission Deadline: May 7th by 11:59 p.m. CST For more information and to submit your presentation summaries, click here...

Research

A Hard Look at Environmental DNA

Living organisms constantly shed whole or fragmented deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), in waste and reproductive products, in mucus, by touch, and even through the air. This ‘loose’ DNA is called environmental DNA (eDNA). Continue Reading…

Kill weeds, not trees

Herbicide selectivity informs applicators of both the spectrum of weed control and the species it can be safely applied to. Applicators should select herbicides that are effective on target weed species and safe on desired species. However, there is often a fine line between herbicide efficacy and off-target injury to desired plants such as trees. Continue Reading…

Printing Plant-Based Meds

Imagine a world without plants. Although this extreme scenario has not become a reality, Earth is facing a concerning trend—the rapid depletion of potential plant-derived drugs. Globally, tens of thousands of flowering plant species play vital roles in medicinal applications, but many of the pharmaceuticals dominating the United States market heavily rely on imported raw plant materials that require very particular climate conditions for optimal growth. Continue Reading...

Community-level assisted migration for climate-appropriate prairie restoration.

Climate change threatens the long-term survival of highly fragmented habitats such as North American tallgrass prairie. De novo plantings into former agricultural sites can contribute to efforts to conserve prairie biodiversity, but past planting practice (including our own) has focused on the use of local species and genotypes.

USDA's National Animal Health Monitoring System Conducts Third National U.S. Small Enterprise Swine Study.

In 2021, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Animal Health Monitoring System, in collaboration with the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, conducted its third national study of U.S. small enterprise swine operations. Approximately 5,000 swine operations from 38 states, accounting for about 95 percent of U.S. swine operations with fewer than 1,000 pigs, were asked to participate. Small enterprise swine production is a growing sector of the U.S. swine industry due to its role as a primary supplier of many niche-market products.

Read Article Here...

Training

MWCA Western Area Spring Managers Training
March 27th – 28th, 2024.

Gerald W. Marks Exploration Center & Rocky Mountain Gardens
1075 South Avenue West, Missoula, MT.

More Information...

Aquatic Invasive Species Sampling and Survey Workshop at Flathead Biological Station

Flathead Lake Biological Station and MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks will conduct a 2 day aquatic invasive species training event providing AIS identification and sampling methods, eDNA sample collection, and equipment decontamination. An integral portion of the training will be spent overviewing and using Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP), a “point of use” technology capable of real-time presence/absence detection.