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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Research Needs
TITLE: Baseline Assessment of
Extent of and Evaluation of Biological Control of Purple
Loosestrife in Nebraska and South Dakota
SUBMITTING BUREAU: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Originating Offices: Region 6
DATE SUBMITTED: July 25, 1997
BIN NUMBER: FWS15CR98
BRD REGION: Central
DESCRIPTION OF NEED: Purple loosestrife, an exotic species, is listed as a noxious weed in South Dakota and although not listed as such in Nebraska, it is also a habitat concern. Purple loosestrife is an invasive species, displacing native wetland plants. Purple loosestrife has the capabilities of rapid expansion either vegetatively or by seed dispersal. It has little or no wildlife habitat value. Many streams in Nebraska, including the Niobrara, Platte and Loup Rivers are reporting severe infestations. Wetland basins in the Sandhills region of Nebraska and South Dakota are also reporting increases in loosestrife abundance. Biological control efforts using defoliating beetles and stem mining weevils are currently active in both states. There has been no assessment to date of either the extent of purple loosestrife abundance, or the effectiveness of the biological control efforts. Several National Wildlife Refuges, National Wild and Scenic Rivers, State Parks as well as private lands are at risk of habitat degradation and loss of native wetland plant communities.
MANAGEMENT PROBLEM WITH NEED: The Nebraska Purple Loosestrife Awareness Committee (NPLAC) is an organization of state and federal agencies, county weed boards and private individuals interested in controlling the spread of purple loosestrife and eliminating current infestations. Local propagation and release efforts of the defoliating beetles, Galerucella sp. are currently in place at several locations. In order to assess the overall need, and the optimal conditions for release, a baseline inventory of current infestations, as well as monitoring habitat conditions to determine is needed. NPLthe Charles Mix County Weed Board have pledged their cooperation and financial support of this proposed project.
Coordination meetings between land management agencies in South Dakota for the past several years have identified weed control issues as a management priority, and purple loosestrife being a high priority species.
BUREAU CONTACT: Charles Pelizza, USFWS, Lake Andes NWR, 38672 291st. Street, Lake Andes, South Dakota, 57356 (605)487-7603; Internet Pelizza, Charlie@FWS.GOV
BRD PRIMARY CENTER: MESC
BRD CENTER CONTACT: Murray Laubhan
RESULTS OF BRD-INITIATED COMMUNICATION (FY99):
May 15, 1998: The study being conducted by BRD/MESC to develop integrated weed management strategies has been initiated, but experiments on purple loosestrife germination will not begin until viable seed can be collected (August 1998). Recent communications with refuge biologists in Region 6 and personnel at other BRD science centers indicate no other current research is being conducted on purple loosestrife in Region 6.
November 19, 1998: The study being conducted by BRD/MESC to develop integrated weed management strategies has been initiated. Seeds of purple loosetrife have been collected from Lake Andes NWR and are currently being processed prior to initiating germination trials. Communications with refuge biologists in Region 6 and personnel at other BRD science centers indicate no other current research is being conducted on purple loosestrife in Region 6.
DATE SUBMITTED TO REGIONAL OFFICE: October 24, 1998
PREPARED BY: Murray Laubhan, Landscape and Habitat Analysis Section, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO; (970)226-9411; email: Murray_Laubhan@usgs.gov.
RESULTS OF BRD-INITIATED COMMUNICATION (FY98): This BIN was received from Region 6, FWS, after the meeting to establish priorities. Telephone conversations (09/18/97; 10/02/97) with Charles Pelizza indicate that the use of biological agents to control purple loosestrife is expanding in Nebraska and South Dakota. Several years have elapsed since original releases, but evaluations on the extent of control and identification of factors that might yield some predictive capability regarding sites that are suitable for release are lacking. BRD personnel were involved in the initial monitoring of bio-control agents on purple loosestrife in the east, but information on post-release conditions (e.g., effectiveness, cost) in the upper midwest are lacking. Although not directly addressing the above issues, BRD/MESC will initiate a study designed to develop integrated strategies for weed control in riparian and wetland systems. A portion of this study will include determining the germination requirements of invasive weeds. Although tall whitetop and saltcedar will be the primary focus, seeds of purple loosestrife will be incorporated into the study design to the extent possible. The results from this study may yield information regarding factors that stimulate the establishment of purple loosestrife and, therefore, help identify high priority sites for monitoring. Based on a conversation (10/17/97) with Diane Larson, no studies currently are being conducted on purple loosestrife at NPWRC.
DATE SUBMITTED TO REGIONAL OFFICE: October 31, 1997
PREPARED BY: Murray Laubhan, Landscape and Habitat Analysis Section, Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, CO; (970)226-9411; email: Murray_Laubhan@usgs.gov
U.S. Department of the Interior | U.S. Geological Survey
URL: http://biology.usgs.gov/cro/98fws-15.htm
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