Invasive Species News

This Month's Topics:

• There’s Still Time to Join the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Winter Mapping Challenge!
• Now Hiring Boat Stewards for the 2022 Boating Season
• DEC Announces Release of Draft Amendment to Campground and Day-Use Area Unit Management Plan to Help Combat Aquatic Invasive Species
• Community Forest Conservation Grant Program 
• Conservationist Magazine
• Upcoming Events and Learning Opportunities

There’s Still Time to Join the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Winter Mapping Challenge!

From February 12 through March 12, NY iMapInvasives and the NYS Hemlock Initiative are hosting NY’s first statewide Winter Mapping Challenge. Join the challenge to help monitor this invasive species and compete to win a prize!

Volunteers and partners across the state have been monitoring invasive hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) all winter, particularly along the “leading edge” of its distribution that runs across NY. Since the start of the challenge, iMapInvasives has received 100 not-detected records across the state, indicating locations where an iMap user checked a hemlock tree but found no HWA – great news for our hemlocks, and the biodiversity they support!

To join this collaborative effort: get outside, find some hemlock trees, check for white “fuzz balls” on the undersides of twigs, and report your findings to NY iMapInvasives – earning the coveted champion title could be that easy! The top-reporter of presence and not-detected records for HWA from February 12 – March 12 will win the challenge.

Visit iMap's website to learn more about the challenge, view the interactive dashboard, and connect with HWA mapping efforts in your area.

Photo submitted to iMapInvasives by Observer #22202

Now Hiring Boat Stewards for the 2022 Boating Season

New York State’s Watercraft Inspection Steward Programs have begun recruiting stewards for the 2022 boating season. If you like working outdoors, interacting with the public, and want to help protect New York’s waters from aquatic invasive species, please check out the SLELO PRISM website for a listing of positions across New York State.

DEC Announces Release of Draft Amendment to Campground and Day-Use Area Unit Management Plan to Help Combat Aquatic Invasive Species

DEC is seeking public comment on an amendment to the Campground and Day-Use Area Generic Unit Management Plan (UMP) that would support DEC's ongoing efforts to prevent the spread of harmful aquatic invasive species (AIS). The proposed amendment would help advance the construction and permanent placement of storage facilities for decontamination equipment used to remove AIS from watercraft at DEC sites.

Research shows that recreational watercraft are the greatest vector for transport and introduction of AIS throughout the U.S. DEC manages 52 campgrounds in the Adirondack and Catskill forest preserves with more than one million overnight visitors each season. The campgrounds and five special day-use areas at Lake George Beach, Prospect Mountain Highway, Hinckley Reservoir Picnic Area, Fourth Lake Picnic Area, and Lake George Battlefield Picnic Area also receive nearly 400,000 day-use visitors annually. Many of these visitors bring recreational watercraft to the campgrounds, arriving at DEC facilities from across the state, U.S., and Canada.

Watercraft inspection stewards provide education and outreach to many boaters at DEC campgrounds. The stewards offer voluntary inspections and boat washes using special decontamination units that have high pressure and hot water to dislodge and remove AIS from the watercraft and trailers. Currently, decontamination units are housed in sheds that are placed seasonally. Moving the temporary sheds at the end of each season is challenging and can damage the equipment. The proposed amendment would advance DEC efforts to construct storage facilities at campgrounds and day-use areas in the Adirondack and Catskill parks to store decontamination equipment.

The draft amendment and details on how to comment are posted on DEC's website. Copies of the draft amendment are available by calling (518) 457-2500. Public comments on the draft amendment are being accepted through April 2.

DEC reminds water recreationists to do their part in protecting New York's waters from AIS by remembering to clean, drain, and dry watercraft and equipment. Taking proactive steps such as cleaning off fishing tackle, removing aquatic vegetation from rudders, disinfecting boat hulls and water compartments, and properly disposing of bait, significantly reduces that risk. For more information, visit DEC's website.

Community Forest Conservation Grant Program

$1 million in grant funds is available to municipalities through DEC’s new Community Forest Conservation Grant Program. These grants will assist communities in the conservation of local forests to create opportunities for public access, help protect natural areas from development, and encourage sustainable management of forested lands. Municipalities can apply for funding to purchase properties directly or through conservation easements to establish these community forests.

Applications are due by 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 13. For more information, visit DEC's website.

Conservationist Magazine

As we approach a change of seasons, it’s a great time to focus on our environment – how to enjoy and protect it. The February/March 2022 issue of the Conservationist contains articles on the rebirth of the Buffalo River and efforts to address climate change, as well as information on estuaries and cisco, a fish that is making a comeback.

Subscribe today by visiting DEC's website or calling 1-800-678-6399.

Upcoming Events and Learning Opportunities

Webinar: Aquatic Restoration Initiative (Saint Lawrence Eastern Lake Ontario Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management) - Wednesday, March 16 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. - In 2020, SLELO PRISM initiated the new Aquatic Restoration Initiative (ARI) beginning in 2020 which will continue through 2023. This webinar will provide an overview of this initiative and the results of completed restoration projects. Go online for more information and a registration link. 

Webinar: A Conversation on Kudzu - When Research Intersects with Management, Good Things Happen (Regional Invasive Species & Climate Change) - Wednesday, March 23 at 12:00 p.m. - Guest speakers for this webinar include Stephen Enloe, professor and extension specialist at the University of Florida IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants, and Steve Manning, President of the Pacific Northwest Invasive Plant Council and founder of Invasive Plant Control. Register online.

Webinar: State of the Science - Swallow-wort Biocontrol (Eastern Lake Ontario Swallow-wort Collaborative) - Wednesday, March 23 from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. - This webinar will showcase swallow-wort biocontrol research that is currently underway in New York State and beyond. Researchers from New York, Rhode Island, and Michigan will provide an overview of their work followed by a panel discussion where researchers and attendees can ask questions and learn from each other. Register online.

Virtual conference: Resilient Long Island (Long Island Invasive Species Management Area and the Long Island Native Plant Initiative) - Thursday, April 7 from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. - The conference will provide opportunities for learning the latest on invasive and native species on Long Island, with an eye for preparing for future challenges together. Go online for more information and a registration link.