Oregon Invasive Species

Will We Rue Goat's Rue?

2012-01-21T19:57:00.000-08:00

Goat’s rue (Galega officinalis) is back. This federal noxious weed is also an Oregon “A” (worst) weed. Goat’s rue was first found here near Grant’s Pass in 2007. That site (an intentionally planted field) was eradicated, but recently it was found again, this time in the Portland area at three different locations. The first new goat’s rue infestation was discovered on Metro property by an employee of the Portland Water Bureau, who rents the property and noted the plants unusual tenacity for spread. That prompted her to identify the plant and inform the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) to its location.

ODA took plant samples to Oregon State University’s Plant Herbarium for verification. While at the herbarium, it was learned that the sample stored there originated from an infestation in the Tualatin area. This set off the alarms. Further networking with the City of Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services indicated that they had identified goat’s rue on Portland Parks and Recreation Department property. Within two weeks, three infestations had been discovered.

Adult Goat’s rue in December with seed pods still attached

ODA and cooperators are now working on a statewide management plan that will focus on expanded survey and early detection rapid response (EDRR) protocols that will hopefully stop the spread of this plant and achieve eradication.

Goat’s rue has a long and interesting history in North America. There are lessons for all of us in this story. Native to the Middle East, goat’s rue is now found throughout much of Europe and western Asia. It was introduced to Utah in 1891 as a potential forage crop. That didn’t work out. It turns out goat’s rue grown in North America contains alkaloid levels that make it unpalatable and even potentially toxic, especially to sheep.

Though goat’s rue bombed as a crop, the plant was very happy and escaped cultivation. One hundred and twenty years later, 60 square miles of Cache County, Utah, are infested. A half dozen other states have also reported infestations. This weed gets around because people continue to experiment with it. It is reputed to have medicinal properties.

Seedlings under litter

Goat’s rue has been used since the Middle Ages to decrease blood sugar and relieve the symptoms of diabetes. According to Wikipedia, there have been clinical trials with compounds derived from the plant, but they were too toxic for human use. That hasn’t stopped people from buying remedies derived from the plant, or from buying seeds and growing their own.

Out of morbid curiosity, I Googled “goat’s rue seeds for sale” and got 415,000 hits! Many of them were for another plant with the same common name, so I tried “Galega officinalis seeds for sale” -- that cut the hit list back to only 19,400! Clearly the fact that this is a federal noxious weed, and it is illegal to sell anywhere in this country, makes little difference in a global, internet-connected world.

That got me thinking about Internet sales of other weeds important to Oregon. Using Latin names to avoid confusion, and only scanning the first page of the hit lists, I searched for Scotch broom (107,000 hits, many clearly offering seeds or plants), yellow starthistle (832 hits, most related to its being a weed, but one offering C. solstitialis seeds for sale at 1 gram for 6 Euros, worldwide shipping), and Patterson’s curse (57,700 hits, including “in stock,” “worldwide shipping”).

Importing any of these plants into Oregon is illegal. Our regulations prohibit importation, propagation, and sale of both “A” and “B” noxious weeds. There are similar regulations related to bullfrogs, carp, and invasive animals. However, it is unreasonable to expect suppliers around the globe to be aware of Oregon’s regulations. Some of their customers want these plants and animals, and they are not problems in all parts of the world. Suppliers are in the business of making money, and they don’t break any laws when they accept an order from Oregon and put a package in the mail.

The person breaking the law is the importer, i.e., the recipient. That means we need to focus on educating our fellow citizens.

Lessons from the goat’s rue story for all Oregonians:

1.) Goat’s rue could be in your neighborhood. The sites in Portland have been there for years and gone unreported. It wouldn’t surprise us if there are other undiscovered sites. Keep your eyes open for a perennial plant that regrows from a taproot each year and reaches two to six feet with hollow stems and pea-like flowers and pods: http://www.oregon.gov/ODA/PLANT/WEEDS/profile_goatsrue.shtml

If you see this plant, report it to: oregoninvasiveshotline.org or the invasive species hotline : 1-866-INVADER.

2.) Plant and animals sometimes behave differently when introduced to new environments.

3.) The Internet greatly facilitates sales and movement of plants and animals around the world.

4.) Check for applicable regulations before ordering or importing live plants or animals, including seeds. The Internet makes it somewhat easier to check regulations, but I recommend the telephone. Direct questions to either: Oregon Department of Agriculture (plants/insects), or Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (animals) – or just call the invasive species hotline, and we’ll point you in the right direction.

If we learn these lessons, we’re less likely to rue this rue and lots of other doodoo, too.

Dan Hilburn and Alex Park

The Unnatural Life of a Plant Quarantine

2011-12-24T10:01:00.000-08:00

Japanese beetle

Plant quarantines are an important tool for excluding invasive species. Oregon has a bunch of plant quarantines; other states and countries have them, too. When one place has a pest problem that others don’t want, quarantines are often enacted to regulate trade from the infested area.

Oregon’s plant quarantines include: grape pests, chestnut blight, Dutch elm disease and elm yellows, blueberry maggot, peach yellows, peach latent mosaic viroid, peach rosette phytoplasma, oak wilt, apple maggot, European corn borer, Japanese beetle, exotic phytophagous snails, cherry bark tortrix, small broomrape, noxious weeds, glassy-winged sharpshooter, and Phytophthora ramorum (sudden oak death). Oregon also has control areas for most of its agricultural regions, which are sort of mini quarantines. You can see these regulations in their entirety in Volume 13, Oregon Administrative Rules, Chapter 603, Division 52: http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/pages/rules/oars_600/oar_603/603_tofc.html.

If that doesn’t put you asleep, the National Plant Board maintains summaries of all the states’ quarantines on their website: http://nationalplantboard.org/laws/index.html.

Quarantines come and go, or at least they should if they are based on biology. Unfortunately, their birth and death are impacted by realities, such as bureaucracy, staff shortages, and human nature. Sometimes they take on a life of their own.

The Umatilla County Control Area for orchard pests is a good example (OAR 603-052-0201 & 0206). This regulation was enacted in 1974. It requires everyone that lives within the designated area to take care of, i.e. spray, his or her fruit trees. It is based on a sound premise—if everyone takes care of their pest problems, the overall pest pressure in the region will be reduced and everyone benefits.

I have two problems with this quarantine. First it mandates all host trees, including those on commercial, residential, public, and abandoned properties, be sprayed with “agricultural chemicals or pesticides.” This is not consistent with modern integrated pest management. We know a lot more now about how to suppress pest populations with less reliance on pesticides. Secondly, and this is my biggest beef, the quarantine boundary is incomprehensible. Here is the description:

“Beginning at the point of intersection of the North and South Center Line of section 18, Township 6 North, Range 35, E.W.M. and the boundary between the States of Oregon and Washington; thence Southerly along the North and South center lines of sections 18, 19, 30, and 31 in Township 6 North, Range 35, E.W.M. to the quarter corner common to section 31, Township 6 North, Range 35, E.W.M. and section 6 Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M. thence Easterly along the line common to sections 31 and 32, Township 6 North, Range 35, E.W.M. and 6 and 5 Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M. to the corner common to sections 32 and 33 in Township 6 North, Range 35, E.W.M. and sections 4 and 5 in Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M.; thence Southerly along the line between sections 4 and 5 in Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M. to the quarter corner between said sections 4 and 5; thence Easterly along the East and West center line of sections 3 and 4 in Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M. to the quarter corner between sections 2 and 3, Township 5 North, Range 35, E.W.M.; . . . . . .”

Trust me—this boundary description goes on, and on, and on, and on, and . . .

Maybe that made sense in 1974, but I doubt if there is a person alive in Umatilla County that knows for sure whether they are in or out of the control area! I’d wager that most people aren’t even aware of the law.

Obviously the regulation needs attention. We set out to clarify things a few years ago and worked with an advisory committee to draft language that would make sense in today’s world. Our proposed amendments would have encouraged integrated pest management and simplified the boundary to all of Umatilla County minus the Umatilla Indian Reservation. We held a hearing in Pendleton and opened up a public comment period. Some people liked our proposal, but some people really didn’t. The main objection we heard was that we would be forcing more people to use pesticides!

Ironically, during the rule-making process, we learned that there is a local ordinance that duplicates the state control area. In the end, we decided to let the sleeping dog lie. Like a lot of other regulations, this one just stayed on the books.

This fall we decided to kick that sleeping dog again. This time we’re proposing to repeal the control area completely. If we can’t get rid of a regulation that is incomprehensible, out-of-date, and duplicative, I worry about our system. The public comment period is open until Jan. 31, 2012. Anyone can send comments to: sgooch@oda.state.or.us.

Oregon’s Administrative Rules now fill 19 volumes each of about 600 pages; our revised statutes fill another 17 volumes! That is too much. With an extreme sense of irony, I offer what I see as the only real solution: another law! I wish there was a law that said in order to enact a new regulation; you had to get rid of two old ones first. From an insider’s point of view, I can tell you I would have no problem doing that for the next 10 years or so. There is always demand for new regulations; do something about Arundo (giant reed), protect us from infested firewood, stop the importation of exotic crickets, etc. Rarely do we hear the opposite.

People aren’t aware of all the petrified laws on the books, and if they aren’t being enforced or are not causing problems, they just accumulate. Do you suppose I could get rid of them if I stacked them up on my desk and drove a stake through the pile? I’ve been doing administrative rule reviews since September, and I’m tempted to try it!

Dan Hilburn

Christmas Tree Hitchhikers

2011-11-30T01:25:00.000-08:00

Oregon’s frantic Christmas tree harvest is winding down. In just a couple of weeks, seven and half million trees are cut and shipped to retail yards around the world. Only 8 percent of those harvested remain in Oregon. This is a busy time for Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) inspectors and their counterparts in receiving states and countries. All of them are doing their best to ensure that pests and diseases are not hitchhiking on the trees.

Before coming to Oregon, I was an inspector in Bermuda, and I often looked at Christmas trees on the docks in the sunny, warm Hamilton harbor. Truck drivers there traditionally take a small branch from the first Christmas tree shipment and insert it in their truck’s grill. Bermudians smile when they see that little reminder of the approaching holidays (Christmas & Boxing Day).

Every one knows Christmas trees vary a lot in shape and desirability from a consumer’s point of view. None of that matters to inspectors. They focus on insects, slugs, tree frogs, Swiss needle cast, and other potential hitchhiking invasive species. From my days in Bermuda, I remember trees from Canada being the cleanest and trees from the Southeast United States being the buggiest. Whether or not there had been a hard frost prior to harvest made a big difference. Oregon trees were always lush and green, but if they hadn’t been exposed to a frost, they were carrying hitchhikers. We’d thump the trunks on the pavement and look for potential pests among the critters that dropped out.

Bermuda, like many islands, has been severely impacted by harmful invaders, including a scale insect that nearly wiped out the endemic Bermuda cedar. They have good reason to be careful with imported plant material.

So far, 2011 has been a good year for Oregon Christmas tree exports. A total of 99 percent of the trees that were certified for export also passed their import inspection at the other end. The few that didn’t included five truckloads rejected at the Mexican border (yellowjackets, weevils), one container turned back in Japan (strawberry root weevil), three fumigated in Guam (spiders), six held in Hawaii (slugs), and one held in Columbia (unidentified bug). Yellowjackets, slugs, and weevils are all known invaders; hats off to the sharp-eyed inspectors that found them.

Inspections are important in the fight against invasive species, but they are not a panacea. As with other commodities, only a small percentage of Christmas trees are checked on either end. The reason is simple; there are a lot of trees and only a few inspectors. Oregon has 10 inspectors working full time on Christmas trees in the fall. That seems like a lot, but if we estimate that 6,900,000 trees are exported (92 percent of total harvest) and the entire harvest happens over 20 working days, each inspector would have to look at 1.2 trees per second to inspect every tree! The best they can do is look at a sample and catch the obvious problems.

What the world really needs is a way to “pasteurize” Christmas trees. Traditionally, trees were shipped straight from the field “as is”. Many growers now use mechanical shakers to remove dead needles and surface hitchhikers. That helps, and some markets now require shaking. Unfortunately, no one has developed a standard, thus the efficacy varies depending on the speed and duration of the shaking. Starting this year, Mexico required 15 seconds of shaking at 700 rpm as well as an insecticide spray prior to harvest. That seems like overkill. Spinning, bouncing, and blowing have also been tried, but no one has tested the efficacy of these methods.

This year ODA started testing different shaking and spray regimes. It is a first step toward developing standard best management practices that will reliably remove potential pests from these famous holiday icons.

In my dreams, we would offer substantial monetary prize for the first person to develop a fast and economical way to “pasteurize” Christmas trees. We could name the process after the developer, ______(your name here)-ize, so Louis Pasteur could quit turning in his grave, and we could eliminate Christmas trees as a pathway for introduction of invasive species. Wouldn’t that be nice?

None of this matters to Oregonians if they cut or choose locally grown trees. We’re lucky to live where Christmas trees are beautiful, inexpensive, and abundant. For us, the best practice is to thump the trunk in the driveway a couple of times before bringing the tree inside. Your kids might enjoy looking for native bugs among the dead needles, and you won’t bring these annoying Christmas guests inside!

Dan Hilburn

Pass the Fruit Salad, Please

2011-11-15T19:04:00.000-08:00

Spotted wing drosophila on ripe fruit. Photo courtesy of homeorchardsociey.org.

A year ago I wrote about spotted winged Drosophila (SWD) in Oregon and the lessons learned from the first year of survey, management, and personal consumptive fruit sampling. Since then, another season has passed. We’ve got another year of experience and another belly-full of Oregon fruit under our belt, and we’re gaining confidence that SWD is not the nightmare we once feared.

In a nutshell, here is what we’ve learned from the perspective of growers, researchers, regulators, and consumers:

Growers

-Growers, including organic growers, can manage this pest if they pay attention and are ready to act when their crop starts ripening.

-SWD attacks ripe, soft fruit (especially raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries). It doesn’t bother green fruit or hard fruit like apples or pears.

-Populations are low in the spring and early summer. SWD builds up in late summer and fall. Numbers in the Columbia Gorge are consistently much lower than western Oregon.

-Grapes are not a preferred host. SWD is present in vineyards in the fall, but it seems to be attracted to split or damaged grapes.

Researchers

-There is a lot of research going on, and we understand this pest much better now than when it first showed up (http://groups.hort.oregonstate.edu/group/spotted-wing-drosophila), but there are still unanswered questions:

-Trap counts have increased dramatically in the fall the last two years. Thankfully, this is after our fruit crops are harvested, but we don’t understand why this happens. There were high trap counts all last winter, and then the population crashed in March. That’s weird. It would be nice to know what is going on.

-The standard trap (plastic cup with drilled holes) and lure (apple cider vinegar) is not very sensitive and it catches a lot of other non-pest Drosophila. It works for research, but it isn’t easy for growers/homeowners to use. We need a better trap.

-SWD is not hard to control, there are a number of materials that work, including organics, but with multiple generations, resistance could build up quickly. We need robust management strategies that don’t rely so heavily on cover sprays.

Regulators

-State and federal regulators across the country have decided not to enact quarantines for this pest recognizing they would have been impossible to enforce and consequently would have had a very low chance of success. Our decision in 2009 not to quarantine infested counties in Oregon was the right one.

-The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) has worked with Oregon State University (OSU) and commercial crop consultants to make growers aware of this new challenge and management techniques they can use. The partnership has worked well.

Consumers

-There is plenty of fresh local fruit available. It is a good idea to rinse it before you eat it; it could have been sprayed, and reducing your exposure to pesticides makes sense.

-If you buy or pick fruit and some goes soft, pick out the bad ones and throw them away.

-Finally, if you’re into unsprayed fruit, accept that you could get some extra protein now and then in the form of SWD eggs/larvae. You won’t taste or feel them, and they aren’t harmful to ingest.

I once asked another entomologist what he recommended for western cherry fruit fly (another pest with similar habits). He said, “Never eat half a cherry!” Our bodies are fine with the occasional swallowed insect, even if our mind says “gross.” In fact, insects are an important part of human diets in many parts of the world. Think about the choice of trace amounts of pesticide residues or a little extra protein. Which would you prefer to eat?

Me? I choose fresh fruit from either conventional or organic sources and wash it, sort out any soft ones, and enjoy it. Works for me. During this season of thanksgiving, we should be thankful that we live in a fruit-producing state and have so much fresh produce available to us. Spotted wing Drosophila isn’t going to change that. “Pass the fruit salad, please.”

Dan Hilburn

Critters in Containers

2011-11-06T11:23:00.000-08:00

Scientific name: Tremex columba and other species
(Hymenoptera: Siricidae)
Facts: Horntails are an unusal because their biology that is not typical of most Hymenoptera. The larvae feed in dead logs much like wood-boring beetle larvae. The adults resemble wasps but they have a wide waist and therefore a cylindrical body. Adults are often found ovipositing on logs.

Photo credit: Bastiaan (Bart) Drees, Extension Entomology, Texas A&M University

A toad hitchhiked from China to Oregon in a container of granite in 2008. Three dozen wood wasps did the same thing recently in a container of machine parts.The first incident was followed by a nightmare of regulatory fumbling; the second was handled like a dream.

The Asian toad incident started when a sharp-eyed inspector in Portland opened a container and saw a “frog” hop out and then back in. The container was resealed. Federal and state agencies debated what to do and who should do it for nearly four weeks. The container was eventually fumigated, and when it was reopened, the “frog” (actually a toad) had croaked. Lots of people, including myself, were embarrassed at the clumsy official response. A multi-agency postmortem was held to figure out what went wrong. The incident report includes a three-page summary of a uncoordinated regulatory process involving a dozen different agencies and companies. A comedian could have turned it into a funny (but very embarrassing) comedy routine. Fortunately, the agencies involved took it seriously and learned from the experience.

The wood wasp incident of 2011 was handled much better. This time it was staff at the receiving warehouse that heard a rustling sound and noticed large insects in a container they had just opened. Recognizing there could be a problem, they closed the container door and notified the broker, who notified Customs.Customs called the USDepartment of Agriculture (USDA). It was Friday afternoon, of course, but USDA sent someone to the warehouse right away. The USDA inspectors found live wood wasps emerging from the wood packing material, resealed the container, and recommended a fumigation treatment. The Oregon Department of Agriculture identified the wasp as an exotic Tremex sp. (wood boring larvae, no native species in Oregon). Both agencies were there when the container was reopened to ensure that the fumigation had killed all the insects, including any larvae still hidden in the wood. The incident ended when the wood was incinerated, and the machine parts resumed their transport – this time without insect cargo.

The difference between the two incidents boils down to better communication and cooperation. No one took charge in the Asian toad incident. One agency after another passed the buck and said they didn’t have authority to do anything, or it wasn’t their problem. I was one of the people that fumbled.

When the 2011 wood wasp incident occurred, USDA took charge and called in ODA for support. Together we identified the problem, determined the level of risk, figured out what needed to be done, and saw it through. Nice job, team.Your quick action saved our trees from exposure to a new pest. Communication and cooperation were the keys to success.

The real heroes, though, were the staff that work for ESCO Corporation and their broker. A big THANK YOU to the folks that noticed a potential problem and reported it: Cedar Whitemen, Mike Plamondon, Shannon Parton, Tracy Ann Whalen, and Robert Boswell. This container had already cleared Customs, and they could have ignored the bugs and sent it on its way. Thankfully, they didn’t. For their good work, they are going to be nominated for an Oregon Invasive Species Council (OISC) award. I hope they win; they deserve recognition.

This is a perfect example of how everyone, not just government inspectors, needs to play a role in the battle against invasive species. Recognizing a potential problem and reporting it to authorities is often the first and most important step. Kudos to the ESCO crew for doing it right.

Individually, we don’t stand a chance at excluding invasive species, but working together, Oregon has a pretty good team! Thanks for being a player. And remember, we’ve made reporting easy with our toll-free invasive species hotline: 1-866-INVADER or oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Keep your eyes open—the next odd-ball invader could end up in your court!

Dan Hilburn

Tricks, Not Treats

2011-10-26T18:04:00.000-07:00

Halloween is definitely my favorite holiday. I love to get scared! Maybe that’s why I’m so interested in invasive species. They may not fly on broomsticks or float through walls, but invaders like zebra mussels and sudden oak death can be a terror in their own right, threatening our Northwest economy and ecosystems. Sure, being attacked by vampires isn’t much fun, but a few cloves of garlic and you’re home safe. Try getting rid of a field of invasive prickly Himalayan blackberry or a stream full of tiny self-cloning New Zealand mudsnails…that’s horror!

But if a trick-or-treater came to your doorstep this year dressed as an emerald ashborer or bighead carp, would you recognize their costumes? Would your neighbors? We have the same challenge with real invasive species. Although preventing biological invasions is our best bet, finding them early is critical for any chance of eradication. That means we need as many eyes out there as possible to notice if one of these miniature monsters arrives to our region. The Oregon Invasive Species Council’s (OISC) “100 Most Dangerous” list (www.oregon.gov/OISC/) is a great place to find out about some of the most notorious invaders on the watch list. More importantly, learn (and teach others) about the plants and animals that normally occur in Northwest streams, bays, forests, and other habitats. Then, even if you can’t identify something that doesn’t look familiar, you’ll know to sound the alarm.

It’s common knowledge to dial 911 in an emergency, but did you know that alerting the authorities about a new invasive species is just as easy? In Oregon, you can call 1-866-INVADER, or submit your report on the OISC hotline at www.oregoninvasiveshotline.org, where your report will be sent immediately to an expert for a response. There’s also a national reporting hotline for aquatic nuisance species (ANS) at 1-877-STOPANS.

You’re not alone in this fight. Many programs are in place to enhance our ability to spot invasive species quickly. There are amazing advances under development to detect genetic fragments of aquatic invaders long before we ever see them splashing about. Computer models are helping us predict where invasive weeds might spread with a changing climate. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and U.S.Geological Survey (USGS) recently teamed up to improve the ability of agency SCUBA divers to find zebra and quagga mussels underwater. In addition to producing guidelines for conducting underwater mussel surveys, USGS has begun to train divers on the specific skills for finding these "needles in a haystack". A USFWS video on this project is coming soon to the Pacific Region’s aquatic invasive species website: http://www.fws.gov/pacific/Fisheries/aquaticnus/

So, keep your eyes open, and not just for ghosts and goblins. And if you’re still pondering costume options for this Halloween, consider dressing up as giant hogweed or a rusty crayfish. We’ll be standing by ready to respond if someone reports you to the hotline!

- Paul Heimowitz, Pacific Region Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Oregon's Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program

2011-10-21T00:57:00.000-07:00

ODFW boat inspectors

In January 2010, Oregon launched an Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program(AISPP) as a result of House Bill 2220, which passed during the 2009 legislative session. The Oregon Marine Board and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife spearhead the program with help from law enforcement agencies and OregonInvasive Species Council member organizations.

The goal—protect Oregon’s environment against the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS). Essentially, we promote “Clean, Drain, and Dry” and conduct boat inspection stations. Invasive species can hitch a ride on boats (both motorized and non-motorized) and other recreational equipment that come into contact with water. This equipment can then move AIS to new water bodies and across state lines. In the past three years, Oregon joined the ranks of states hosting boat inspection stations, including Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Washington, Utah, Colorado, and California.

Who is paying to protect Oregon from AIS? The program is funded entirely by the sale of AIS boat permits (also started in 2010). Motorboats pay $5 towards the program when they renew their biennial registration, non-motorized boats pay $5 for an annual permit to carry on the boat, and non-resident motorboats must purchase an annual $20 permit.

Setting up the inspection station

During 2010, Oregon boat inspectors conducted inspections at boat ramps and roadways (at major highway rest areas). The good news is that dirty boats with attached AIS were cleaned on-site with a portable hot water (up to 140^o F—the temperature needed to kill the dreaded zebra or quagga mussels) pressure washer unit. The bad news—these boat inspection stations were voluntary, and boats could drive by the stations without stopping. During 2010, only about 1 in 3 boaters stopped at the stations.

We needed help from our legislators to deal with lack of compliance, and we got it. During the 2011 legislative session, legislators passed House Bill 3399, which requires boaters to stop at inspection stations. Violators can be fined $142. To introduce the new law, AIS program partners hosted an inspection station law enforcement day on September 2 at the Port of Entry commercial truck weigh station in Ashland. Orange and white signs and a large digital reader board gave motorists ample notification that the inspection station was ahead. By the end of the day, a total of 47 boats were encountered. Here’s some interesting stats:

20 boats stopped for inspection, but 27 did not (about a 43% compliance rate)
43 boats were found to be clean, and 4 boats had attached aquatic vegetation
We stopped 24 motorboats, 7 personal watercrafts (jet skis), and 16 non-motorized boats.
Boat owners were from six different western states

All but two of the passing boats that didn’t stop were pulled over by State Police troopers—all received warnings for not stopping. An inspector rode with the troopers to perform a quick roadside inspection on boats that hadn’t stopped. All of the motorists that were stopped were very apologetic and provided many excuses for not stopping, including:

· “I didn’t see the signs”

· “I have driven by before and never got stopped”

· “I thought the inspections were only for Californians”

· “I saw the signs but didn’t know where to stop”

· “I didn’t think having to stop applied to me”

· and lastly—and my personal favorite—a retired couple on vacation stated, “I forgot that I put the canoe on top of the truck this morning”

The boat inspection stations are now closed around the state and will re-open next year by Memorial Day weekend. I hope more people comply next year. Permit compliance went up in year two of the program, and over time, more of the boating public will become aware of the requirements.

Highway sign

“Clean, Drain and Dry” your boat is the message, and when you see that bright orange sign on the highway that says boat inspection ahead, make sure you pull in, or you might find yourself looking in the rearview mirror with red and blue lights flashing at you.

Glenn Dolphin

Oregon Marine Board – AIS Coordinator

Yin and Yang at Ports of Entry

2011-10-17T11:59:00.000-07:00

There is always a pile of folders and papers on my desk. It is my active pile—the stuff that needs attention. Every morning I shuffle the pile and pick out the highest priority projects. Some stuff gets dealt with quickly, and some stays in the pile for a long time. Recently I had to chuckle when an Associated Press (AP) news release on invasive species slipping through our ports (quick action) surfaced back-to-back with a long-time-in-the pile federal register notice about Not Authorized Pending Pest Risk Analysis (NAPPRA). Yin and Yang—two sides of the invasive species coin. Let me explain.

Invasive species reach the United States in different ways. Some of them stow away in vessels, containers, and commodities (e.g., Asian gypsy moth, yellowstarthistle, and zebra mussels); others are brought in intentionally (e.g., Scotch broom, Asian carp, and gypsy moth). These pathways intersect at our airports, seaports, and land ports of entry. Inspectors at the ports are checking both pathways; they are looking for invasive hitchhikers, and they are verifying that intentionally imported plants and animals are allowable species. When they are inspecting live plants and animals for hitch hiking pests, they are doing both at the same time.

The gist of the AP story was that more invasive species have slipped through the ports in the years following 9/11 when inspectors started focusing more on preventing terrorism. Stopping thugs and drugs has became a higher priority than stopping bugs. According to the article, the number of introductions of crop-threatening pests spiked from eight in 1999 to 30 last year. Not good, but not surprising, because we only have enough inspectors to look at a tiny fraction of what we import. Thankfully, the next item in the pile contained better news.

NAPPRA is finally here; it stands for Not Authorized Pending Pest Risk Analysis. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is adopting important new regulations. Until recently, if someone wanted to bring in living plants, they could apply for an import permit—plants were enterable unless listed on the federal noxious weed list. It was a “prohibited list” approach—plants were presumed to be harmless unless they were known bad actors. NAPPRA changes that.

The USDA is putting 148 taxa of plants on the NAPPRA list. This indicates that these plants could became weeds or carry harmful pests, so they are not being approved pending a risk anyalsis. In effect, there will be three categories:

1.) prohibited (noxious weeds);

2.) enterable (history of safe introduction or having a low risk rating from a completed risk analysis); and

3.) not approved pending risk analysis (risk unknown, prohibited until analysis completed).

It makes sense to me. The only thing I don’t like about this idea is the way it is being implemented. Discussion of the need for NAPPRA started a decade ago, and it is just now seeing the light of day. Then instead of all new plants being automatically listed with NAPPRA, the USDA is going to post federal notices and solicit public comment every time they propose adding new taxa. The first list was open for comment for 60 days, and because of requests for more time, the USDA is planning to reopen the comment period for another 30 days! Ugh. Why does it have to be so slow and complicated? Simpler would be better.

In the battle to prevent harmful invasions, the rules of engagement change slowly. Hopefully, this slow but important step in the right direction will improve our success rate at excluding invasive species, and AP’s next story on invasive pest introductions won’t be so discouraging. My active pile is already too tall. . . .

Dan Hilburn

Arundo Power, Part 2

2011-10-01T16:06:00.000-07:00

Last March I posted an article on growing giant reed grass (Arundo donax) in Oregon for biofuel, http://oregoninvasivespecies.blogspot.com/2011/03/oregon-gambles-with-giant-reed-grass.html. Today, I want to give you an update.

Arundo donax in Arizona.

Just last month, the State Weed Board and the Oregon Invasive Species Council met in Boardman for a joint meeting focused on Arundo. Included was a tour of Arundo fields, Experiment Station test plots, and Portland General Electric’s (PGE) power plant. Fifty-eight people participated, and most of them stayed until almost 6:00 PM to participate in the interesting discussion that followed.

Oregon's only coal-producing power plant is in Boardman.

If you live in Oregon and use electricity, you are a player in a giant experiment. PGE needs to replace coal as the fuel for their Boardman powerplant by 2020 or shut the plant down. They could build new natural gas-fired power plants, but they prefer to keep the “already paid for” Boardman plant operating with a renewable fuel—thus their interest in a fast growing source of biomass that could be produced in huge quantifies within 50 miles of the powerplant. The power plant consumes 350 tons of coal per hour and operates around the clock! That’s four long trains-worth of Wyoming open pit-mined coal every week.

PGE is proposing to replace all that coal with torrefied biomass (the plant is dried with heat until it almost turns to charcoal) from about 50,000 to 90,000 acres of Arundo. Other sources of biomass, such as torrefied wood waste, could be incorporated with the Arundo. Theoretically, the powerplant would need very little modification for this conversion. Interestingly, because of laws mandating use of renewable energy sources in Oregon, energy produced from biomass would not have to compete with fossil fuel-produced power. We were told it could be five times more expensive to produce, yet it might still be economic. Biomass would be a good complement to wind turbines, because it can provide power when the wind isn’t blowing.

Unfortunatly, Arundo is a weed. In fact, it is considered one of the worst weeds in the world. Arundo is invasive in warm climates, especially in riparian areas. Up until now, it hasn’t been invasive in Oregon, but it will definitely grow here. Some of the fields and test plots that were planted last March and April now have 10-ft. tall plants. It is too early to say how well it will overwinter, but previous test plots in Prosser, Washington persisted for six years.

At this point, the Arundo in Oregon looks like a crop. It has not spread beyond the field borders. It hasn’t produced any flowers or seeds. PGE recently cut and swathed four of the 85 acres currently in the ground. It looks like it will be easy to bale. The canes were pretty well shattered by the mower/conditioner. Pieces of cane and rhizomes left on the ground were dried out and showed no signs of taking root. Oregon State University, PGE, and the first Arundo farmers deserve credit for being careful while sticking their neck out and trying something new.

None of this convinced the people in the group with first-hand Arundo-fighting experience. In fact, they looked at the first year, 10-ft tall plants and shuddered to think how well Arundo would do in our natural riparian areas. After the tour, some of them were less concerned with PGE’s plans to grow Arundo under irrigation circles than they were with Arundo being sold in the nursery trade. Wayne Lei, PGE’s chief engineer on the Arundo project, highlighted this issue by buying a pot of Arundo at a Portland nursery and planting it right beside the front door of the Boardman powerplant!

It seems clear that Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) needs to maintain regulations to prevent Arundo from establishing in riparian areas. This means we need to consider phasing it out of the nursery industry. If we don’t, sooner or later, someone will plant it on a river bank, and we’ll have a weed worse than Japanese knotweed on our hands. Assuming growing Arundo for biomass goes beyond the test phase, we also need to find a mechanism to pay for riparian area surveys. An assessment based on acres planted or tons produced was suggested. I like that idea. Just a dollar or two per acre would pay for a pretty robust survey and maybe some research as well.

Everyone loves the idea of renewable biofuels, and no one wants to introduce new weeds. Can we have it both ways? Planting huge quantities of Arundo involves risk, but maybe if we’re smart about how we do it, we can have our green electricity and our Arundo-free environment, too. What do you think? ODA will begin crafting Arundo regulations to replace the expiring temporary rule soon. We could use your input.

Dan Hilburn

EDRR for Regular Folks

2011-09-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Lots of people want to help combat invasive species. One of our challenges is that the best strategy for dealing with invaders is to keep them out of Oregon in the first place. So for good reasons, agencies and the Oregon Invasive Species Council focus on early detection and rapid response (EDRR).

Unfortunately, it is hard for the public to participate in EDRR at the state-level. Lets face it—When was the last time you ran into a species on the 100 Worst Invaders list? Seen any alder root rot lately? How about Swede midge? Amur gobies? No? Me neither. Even if one bit me on the nose, there is an excellent chance I wouldn’t recognize them.

But luckily, it isn’t always so difficult. I count 18 species on the Oregon 100 Worst Invaders list that everybody ought to be able to recognize without a microscope or special training. Here is my EDRR list for regular folks. All of these suspected invaders should be reported online at www.oregoninvasiveshotline.org or via the telephone at 1-866-INVADER.

1.) Whirling Disease. If you see fish (especially juveniles) swimming ‘round and ‘round in little circles, it could be whirling disease—report it.

2.) Rock Snot. Gross, slimy stuff that looks like toilet paper trailing in the current in streams and rivers could be rock snot—report it, don’t wipe with it.

3.) Yellow FloatingHeart. This aquatic weed has lily pad-like floating leaves with 5-petalled yellow flowers. If you see it, report it.

4.) Giant Hogweed. This enormous weed looks like cow parsnip on steroids. It can grow 12-15 tall and have leaves three feet across! Report it if you see it—the sap causes a nasty rash.

5.) Japanese Dodder. Is that orange spaghetti growing in a tree? Probably not, but it could be this weird parasitic plant—report it if you see it.

6.) Kudzu. Kudzu is a vine that grows up and over trees, telephone poles, and anything else that doesn’t move. It has leaves in groups of 3 resembling bean leaves. Kudzu flowers are rare, but if you see them, they are purple and smell like grape Kool-Aid.

7.) Mitten Crabs. Any crab with furry claws ought to be reported. None of the native crabs wear mittens.

8.) Zebra/QuaggaMussels. Freshwater mussels that stick to boats, docks, mooring lines, etc. should be reported, especially if they have faint stripes.

9.) Africanized HoneyBees. Even experts have trouble distinguishing individual honeybees from African bees. However, their behavior is very different. If you disturb an African bee nest, they will pursue you en masse and follow you for a very long way as you run—get medical attention first, but then report them.

10.) Asian LonghornedBeetle. Regular people have reported several infestations of this striking beetle in other states. If you see a large, shiny black beetle with white spots and antennae as long as it’s body, you should report it.

11.) Emerald Ash Borer. Metallic green beetles shaped like a boat could be emerald ash borer, but they are not commonly observed. In case of an infestation, you are more likely to notice dying ash trees and increased woodpecker activity. Birders, if you notice that, let us know.

12.) Imported Fire Ant. Small ants are common in Oregon, but we don’t have any native species that attack en masse and sting. If that happens to you, report it.

13.) Japanese Beetle. Single Japanese beetles are copper-colored and about the size of a nickel. Individually, they’d likely escape notice, but they like to feed in groups. If you see a bunch of beetles eating roses, grapes, zinnias, beans or other plants, report it.

14.) Asian Carp. Large carp that jump out of the water at the sound of outboard motors should be reported.

15.) Northern Pike/Muskellunge. Long, thin fish with big teeth and small dorsal fins should be reported.

16.) Snakeheads. If you catch a fish that looks like a pike but has a dorsal fin that runs the length of the back, it could be a snakehead and should also be reported.

17.) Mute Swan. Big, white swans with an orange beak that has a black knob at its base should be reported.

18.) Feral Swine. Wild boars should be reported. You’d know it if you saw one, but they are pretty wary, so you’re more likely to see their rooting damage. If you come across an area that looks like it has been rototilled, especially in a riparian corridor, and for no apparent reason, report it.

EDRR makes good biological sense, and in a time of scarce resources, it is our best strategy for keeping out harmful invaders. Everyone can participate at some level. If you see any of the above, please report them to: 1-866-INVADER or www.oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Keep your eyes open and thanks for being on the front line.

Dan Hilburn

Invasive Species in a Flat World

2011-09-04T17:05:00.000-07:00

A recent digest of US Department of Agriculture (USDA) press releases and federal register posts caught my eye. It contained five items. Individually, they seem rather ordinary, but together they tell a story. What do you notice?

Here is evidence that the world really is flat—not just in the economic sense that Thomas Friedman discussed in his brilliant book (2005) “The World is Flat,” but also for invasive species.

It used to be that oceans and mountain ranges provided geographical barriers that kept the pests in one region out of other regions. Not any more. Globalization of trade and travel has flattened the mountains and built bridges across the oceans. An insect lays its egg on a tomato stem in West Africa or under the skin of a mango in Pakistan, and the larva might hatch in New York or Oregon. Likewise, a pallet made from wood infested with Asian longhorned beetle larvae supports a shipment of computer components made in China, and ends up in Washington (actually happened recently).

I know that USDA works hard to assess the risks of agricultural trade and requires mitigation measures to reduce the risks, but there is no perfect system. If you don’t believe me, take an entomologist or a plant pathologist to the produce section of your supermarket. I’m confident they’d be able to find bacteria, insects, and other live hitchhikers. Good places to look: blemishes on potatoes, brown spots on lettuce stems, and the calyx of apples. As you’d expect, organic produce is often biologically interesting. (Somebody ought to study that.)

I’m not anti-globalization. I like bananas on my cereal and grapes in the winter. But I do think we need to be smart about trade. Tomatoes imported from Africa does not sound smart to me—can’t we can grow our own closer to home? What about the customs and border inspection people, you might ask? Don’t they screen out the problems? They do catch a lot, but visual inspections at the border are not the answer. Not only are many of the pests that are coming into our country microscopic, but we only have enough inspectors to look at a small percentage of the commodities we import.

We also need research on safe, economical methods for disinfesting commodities and robust early detection and rapid response programs for the harmful pests that inevitably slip through.

Finally, we need more people that know how and when to report an unusual scale insect on an orange peel or a spider in their bananas. In Oregon, we’ve made it easy: 1-866-INVADER or http://www.oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Keep your eyes open—you can encounter exotic creatures right in your kitchen in a flat world!

Dan Hilburn

Pretty Weeds in Paradise: Ribbon Grass on the Metolius

2011-08-24T12:04:00.000-07:00

Ribbon grass along the Metolius River in central Oregon. Photo by Maret Pajutee.

Are there weeds in paradise? Are they pretty? I’m afraid so. I think I saw them there recently. I love central Oregon, and one of my favorite spots is the headwaters of the Metolius River near Camp Sherman. It is an extraordinarily beautiful place.

Clear, cold water fed by snowmelt from the Cascades springs from a hillside, forming an instant river. Large trout tempt fly fishermen as the river winds through pine forests and meadows past Camp Sherman and on to Lake Billy Chinook. The snow-covered slopes of Mt.Jefferson provide a stunning backdrop.

Recently, after hiking up BlackButte, our group stopped at the Camp Sherman store and bought food for a picnic. We sat down along the river to eat. It was shirtsleeve weather, the scenery was postcard beautiful, and the only bugs were mayflies that the fish were having for dinner. Paradise couldn’t be any nicer; even the grass was pretty -- it was an attractive green and white.

Ribbon grass in front of store on Metolius River. Photo by Maret Pajutee.

As I was soaking up the scenery and eating my salmon burger, it dawned on me that there was something peculiar about the grass. It looked out of place. The rest of the riverside vegetation seemed to belong to the pristine riparian habitat, but the variegated grass stood out like a new Corvette at an antique car show. Once I started looking around, it was everywhere. We hiked downstream for a mile and saw that 6-ft diameter clumps where scattered up and down both banks and on all the islands. A few patches were as big as the cabins nearby.

I pulled up a sample to take to the office for identification, but it wasn’t necessary. Crossing back over the Camp Sherman Bridge, we spotted a small sign pointing out a ribbon grass solarization project. The US Forest Service (USFS) and local teens pulled up the ribbon grass on an island just below the bridge, covered it with landscape fabric, and replanted native sedges. There is a short video describing the project at: http://www.ktvz.com/news/27303106/detail.html

US Forest Service work team handpulling ribbon grass. Photo by Maret Pajutee.

While I applaud the Forest Service for their project, the potential of the demonstrated method doesn’t match the scale of the problem. Walk down the river and you’ll see what I mean. There is a lot of ribbon grass, and it’s displacing the native vegetation and growing out into the river. According to the sign, it first showed up in 2003, so it’s spreading fast. It looks like a classic riparian noxious weed invasion, but it isn’t. Here is why.

Ribbon grass is an ornamental variety of reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea. You can probably buy it at your local garden store. The OregonAssociation of Nurseries’ Nursery Guide lists three wholesale nurseries that carry it. Regular reed canary grass (same species, different variety) is a valuable hay and forage species in some situations and is not today considered to be a noxious weed in Oregon.

This creates an awkward situation. An ornamental grass is taking over the banks of one of the premier trout streams in Oregon. It is changing the scenery, and it has to be changing the ecology. Local biologists recognize the problem and see it getting worse, but the Forest Service has to comply with National Environmental Policy Act rules that severely limit control options. All the while, the average fishermen and the general public are oblivious to the invasion. If someone did want to clean it up, people would likely oppose the use of herbicides, given the sensitivity of using chemicals in places where people like to recreate. Other options have been tried (pulling and covering) with limited success. Pulling is probably worse for the ecology of the river because it stirs up lots of sediment. Covering isn’t any better as it kills everything under the plastic – neither are practical given the extent of the invasion and both would require working in the river, which is quite dangerous due to strong currents that can sweep people under fallen logs.

The situation is not out of hand - yet. We have a window of opportunity, and we have the tools to repel this invasion. Pete Schay, with Friends of the Metolius, has demonstrated that aquatic formulations of Rodeo and Habitat work well, especially after the first frost. He’s eliminated the ribbon grass on almost all the private land in the area with no adverse effects to the fish or other wildlife. The ribbon grass that remains is on public land managed by the Forest Service. The Forest Service has been trying to get approval to use herbicides on the Deschutes National Forest for a decade. Maret Pajutee, USFS Ecologist, told me that sensitive issues related to the Metolius are holding up the Environmental Impact Statement. Meanwhile the ribbon grass keeps spreading.

Ironically, if it wasn’t a variegated variety, it wouldn’t look so out of place. This weekend I was biking on the Banks-Vernonia State Trail. Reed canary grass was common on the trail margins. It looked great, and the only thing it was competing with was Himalayanblackberry! Reed canary grass and ribbon grass -- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; it is an interesting case.

We’re lucky to live in this beautiful state with special places like the Metolius. Ribbon grass is invading that piece of paradise. Is that acceptable? We all have a stake in this – it’s our public land. Should we do something or not? What do you think?

Dan Hilburn

Vacationing with Invasive Species in Mind – Part 2, the Bad Stuff

2011-08-08T08:58:00.000-07:00

In my last article, I focused on positive stories related to invasive species from a recent camping trip in the Sierra Nevada. This time I want to talk about the invasive species problems we encountered.

Our route took us 800 miles south on I-5 before we turned left toward Sequoia National Park. The Oregon and northern California stretches of the highway were pleasant and scenic, as highways go. Somewhere south of Sacramento the scenery went to hell. Not only was the air a sickly yellow-brown and the pavement in terrible condition, but yellow star thistle and Russian thistle dominated the non-crop landscape. It was ugly. We couldn’t wait to get out of there. At the southwestern edge of Sequoia National Park, a promontory at 6,700 feet (Moro Rock) has an interpretive panel about the deterioration of air quality that has diminished the westward viewing distance from more than 100 miles when the park was established a century ago to just a few miles today. Thankfully, the eastward view from the same spot, toward the Great Divide, is still spectacular.

The State of California eliminated their noxious weed program this year due to budget cuts. That’s a worry; our staff considered them valuable allies, especially in the area of biological control. Somebody needs to pay attention to the weeds in California, especially in the Central Valley where one-fourth of the food America eats is grown. If they don’t, hell is going to spread. There is one silver lining—ODA hired the best of the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) laid-off staff, Carri Pirosko, to take over Ken French’s territory (now retired) in southwestern Oregon.

While I’m on the subject of weeds, one of the few weeds noticeable in national parks was cheatgrass. There wasn’t a lot of it, but here and there along the roads and trails, it existed, a reminder of the many invasives waiting in the wings to dominate any landscape. We also encountered a lot of prescribed burning in the forests. Numerous signs explained how the sequoias and other conifers are fire-adapted and how fire improves the forest’s health. I wonder how cheat grass is going to fit into that picture? It is fire-adapted, too, and extremely invasive. Watch out!

Firewood was also on my mind. In my last article, I mentioned seeing commercial firewood sold in boxes with labeling that included origin information and assurances that the contents met California air quality standards. It was $8.50 a box, not too bad considering it was bigger than a typical bundle, clean and easy to handle, and it included kindling and fire-starter (the cardboard). Other stores were selling firewood for $5.00 to $5.50 per dinky bundle (5-6 sticks). No wonder people like to bring their own.

Someday I hope there is a standard for all commercial firewood so that it is either locally produced or heat-treated to kill insects and plant diseases. Another alternative we should consider is the system used in Canadian National Parks. On last year’s camping trip, we visited Alberta and British Columbia. There they charged us $8 extra for a campfire, but then we had unlimited access to a huge pile of firewood in the middle of the campground. They even provided wheelbarrows! No worries there about people bringing bug-infested firewood with them.

Next, I need to mention cars and crowds. Did you know there are traffic jams in Yosemite? The parking lots are jammed, vultures are circling, and shuttle buses, where they exist, are stuck in traffic jams with all the cars. It is great that people are out enjoying our parks, but we need to get smarter about getting people to the parks and getting them around in the parks. More roads for more cars is not the answer. From an invasive species point of view, roads are pathways and cars are vectors. We need better and smarter transportation alternatives.

Lastly, I have a confession to make. Counter to our Buy It Where You Burn It campaign, I took my own firewood. I didn’t even think about it when I packed our car, and the California border inspector didn’t ask or didn’t notice it. Probably he would have let us keep it anyway, as it was all scrap lumber from carpentry projects—very low risk. Scrap lumber is another issue we’re going to have to deal with as we craft Oregon’s imported firewood regulations. Invasive species exclusion is always harder than you’d imagine. We’ve got our work cut out for us, but I’d rather face our challenges than those of our neighbors to the south.

Dan Hilburn

Vacationing with Invasive Species in Mind – Part 1, the Good Stuff

2011-08-06T09:52:00.000-07:00

Giant sequoia in California.

Biologists have trouble leaving their work behind when they vacation. Entomologists and weed scientists are the worst. Everywhere they go, they see interesting specimens that they have to examine, photograph, or collect. Pity their long-suffering spouses.

I’m not a fanatic, but my wife will tell you I’m guilty of biological interruptions while vacationing. On our recent camping trip through the Sierra Nevada, I couldn’t help noticing invasive species and our California colleagues’ efforts to combat them. There were some good things and some not so good things. In this article, I’ll focus on the good stuff; next time I’ll cover the problems.

1.) Gypsy Moth Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR). I’ve been involved with gypsy moth early detection and rapid response for so long that I can spot gypsy moth traps at highway speeds. In spite of California’s budget woes, I was happy to see gypsy moth traps in the campgrounds and other high-risk introduction sites. Oregon’s 30-year record of success at excluding gypsy moths wouldn’t have been possible without similar commitments from our neighbors. California, Washington, and Idaho all have roughly equivalent gypsy moth EDRR programs and the same record of success. The program works because we’re all doing it.

2.) Boat Inspection Stations. We passed a couple of boat inspection stations targeting quagga/zebra mussels. We weren’t pulling a boat, so I don’t know how thorough their inspections are, but it was gratifying to know they are trying to slow the spread of aquatic nuisance species. Signage at campgrounds and boat launches was also much in evidence. One boat launch at Lake Tahoe had four posters on an information board, three of which had to do with invasive species. Again, this has ramifications for Oregon. The more Californians that know to clean their boat between launches, the lower the risk of invasive mussels or weeds hitchhiking to Oregon.

3.) Firewood. At two different retail outlets I saw firewood being sold in boxes. Neat idea! The boxes included kindling and, of course, the cardboard itself makes an excellent fire starter. The label included not only the origin of the wood (Fresno, CA) but also a statement that the contents met California air quality standards. It would sure be nice if all commercial firewood was sold this way and all of it met an invasive species-free standard.

4.) Healthy Forests. Gawking at enormous 2,000-year old sequoias is an awesome experience. They are so big and so old, one can’t help but marvel at their continued survival and apparent good health. There were a lot of other healthy-looking trees in the Sierras, too. The species composition, at least in the parks, is what it has always been. Not all our nation’s forests are like that—chestnut blight, gypsy moth, emerald ash borer, and other invasive species have undermined the forest health of large regions and changed the species composition. Our western national forests and national parks are still in pretty good condition.

5.) Road Shoulders. The roads through Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Yosemite, and Lassen Volcanic National Parks were beautiful. Not only was the scenery stunning, but it was enhanced, in my opinion, by the beautifully built and maintained roads. It wouldn’t have been nearly as spectacular if the shoulders were covered with weeds. Kudos to the National Park Service for beautiful shoulders!

6.) World Visitors. Our national parks are swarming with people. Campgrounds and parking lots were full. Interestingly, a large percentage of the visitors were not speaking English. My wife is a foreign language nut, and she identified people speaking: German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Icelandic, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and other languages she didn’t recognize! It was extraordinary. One night we shared a campfire with a Dutch couple. We asked them why they were camping so far from home. They said The Netherlands has only one national park. and it isn’t very popular because there is nothing to do there. We all talked about our jobs, and I explained my passion for invasive species exclusion. They were aware of the issue through a familiarity with eastern grey squirrels (native to eastern North America) which have spread to Europe—and Oregon.

It was a great vacation. Thanks, California, you’ve got some amazing landscapes, and I’m glad you’re working to protect them. We left behind much more Oregon-earned money than we’d budgeted—that should help pay for an insect/weed scout or two!

Dan Hilburn

Eradication Success Stories

2011-07-09T10:14:00.000-07:00


Feral swine is one species the Oregon Invasive Species Council would like to add to the list of eradicated invasive species in the State of Oregon. Photo by Texas Department of Agriculture.

How many noxious weeds have been detected and then completely eradicated from Oregon? That question came up recently while I was traveling with Tim Butler, ODA’s Noxious Weed Program Manager. There are many examples of successful eradication on specific sites, but actually eliminating a weed from Oregon has been rare. We could think of only one example: Spartina alterniflora (saltmarsh cordgrass).

Maybe we can add mile-a-minute weed to that list. There is an old record from Portland that is thought to have been associated with soil used as ship ballast. This plant hasn’t been seen for over a century, so I think it is safe to say it is no longer established. Maybe someone plowed it or pulled it or turned some goats out on it, or maybe it just died out. We’ll never know, but it’s an easily noticable weed, so it wouldn’t surprize me if humans had a hand in it’s demise.

There are a number of other weeds that are being treated now with the goal of eventual eradication. If we keep after them, we might get rid of them once and for all: kudzu, Patterson’s curse, Alyssum murale, giant hogweed, African rue, distaff thistle, and purple starthistle. Some of these projects have been going on for more than a decade and have reduced known populations to just a few plants. You’d think it would be easy to finish them off—it’s not. You can kill all the plants and still not be done. Weed seeds stay viable in the soil for years and don’t germinate until conditions are right. A good example is kudzu. We thought we had successfully eradicated kudzu from three sites a couple of years ago (2 in Portland, 1 Aurora), but this year we found new plants at both of the Portland sites. Tim thinks they were seedlings. It is a good thing we went back and checked.

Our track record with invasive insects is somewhat better. Breeding populations of gypsy moths have been eradicated several dozen times since the first one was discovered in 1970. We’ve also had success against half a dozen Japanese beetle infestations in Oregon. One other notable victory was the eradication of an infestation of granulate ambrosia beetles from The Dalles in 2008. We’ve found and treated other potential invaders before they became established, but I can’t think of any other examples where we’ve eliminated breeding populations.

Overall, compiling examples of successful eradications results in a pretty short list. If there are other examples, I’d like to know about them. Can you think of any? Have we ever eradicated an invasive fish, mammal, bird, or other vertebrate from Oregon? It would be nice if we could add feral swine to the list someday. It should be possible—they may spread like weeds, but at least they don’t have a seed bank!

Dan Hilburn

High Cost of Cheap Seed

2011-06-30T12:11:00.000-07:00

What do you look for when you buy grass seed for your lawn? A good price? An attractive label? If you’re savvy, maybe you look for the best variety for the amount of shade in your yard. Very few people look at the fine print on the back of the bag for the really important information on weed seed content. They should.

There is a bag of grass seed that has become a permanent fixture in our office. It was bought a couple of years ago as a prize for a Wellness Committee fitness contest. The sorry thing was never given out because somebody read the label and noticed it contained: 87.7% annual ryegrass, 9% perennial ryegrass, 1.5% other crop seed, 1.5% inert matter, and 0.3% noxious weed seed. It then lists the weeds you’d be innoculating into your lawn if you planted the contents of the bag. In this case, annual bluegrass, hairy chess, and curly dock. We work too hard battling noxious weeds in this Department – there was no way we were going to encourage someone to sow more!

Weed seeds have been hitchhiking with desirable seeds for centuries. Something like a third of Oregon’s noxious weeds are thought to have arrived as seed contaminants. It all starts with weeds in the seed fields. The seeds of the weeds get harvested right along with the seeds of the crop. Yellow starthistle, spotted knapweed, dodder, and whitetop have been spread around as seed contaminants. In this day and age, seed cleaning removes a lot of weed seed, but not all of it. Last year in our laboratory, 190 seed lots out of 6,529 (3%) tested failed because of weed seed contamination above allowable thresholds. This week, our lab has processed 43 seed lots. Weed seeds were found in six of them, though infestation levels were below thresholds, so off they went into commerce – weed seeds and all.

Buyer beware. If you buy cheap seed, you’re likely to get the weedy stuff. We should all make a habit of buying good quality, clean seed. Read the label, including the fine print. If you buy cheap weedy seed or untested seed, you’ll probably pay for it later. The US Forest Service (USFS) learned this lesson the hard way.

In 1988, the Tepee Butte fire burned 66,000 acres in Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. Following the fire, the USFS reseeded the burned area by air, including some adjacent private land. The following spring, they discovered the seed had been contaminated with yellow starthistle. Not only did the Forest Service have to spend a considerable amount of money cleaning up their own land, but the private landowner sued and won a six figure settlement. Ouch!

Oregon’s seed law related to weed contamination needs work. The weed seed tolerances (OAR 603-056-0205) were adopted in 1983 and last revised in 1996. Three years later, Oregon’s noxious weed list was adopted as a regulation (OAR 603-052-1200) preventing importation and selling of noxious weeds. This second regulation has been updated almost every year as new weeds are added. The weed seed and noxious weed regulations have never matched and continue to diverge. It makes no sense.

We’ve got work to do. In the meantime, you can help by reading the fine print on seed packages and not sowing more weeds. We’ve got enough already, thank you!

Dan Hilburn

Official Survey versus Outreach and Education

2011-06-22T19:51:00.000-07:00

Asian longhorned beetle exit holes are about the size of the
diameter of a pencil.

There are two ways that invasive species are detected—people notice and report them, or technicians discover them during surveys. Historically, in Oregon, most of the important early detection discoveries have been the result of surveys. Every single gypsy moth and Japanese beetle infestation ever found in Oregon has been detected by survey before anyone in the public ever noticed the pests or their damage. Sudden oak death in Brookings was first detected during an aerial survey. All the non-native Spartina (saltmarsh cordgrass) infestations on the Oregon coast have been found during surveys. Since the beginning of 2007, 32 new non-native insects/snail species have been found in Oregon—26 (81%) were found during surveys.

There are exceptions. For example, the invasive tunicate in Winchester Bay was reported by an alert volunteer diver working for the Oregon Aquarium. German yellowjackets in Tillamook were discovered by a resident. And Patterson’s Curse in Linn County was recognized by a visitor from Down Under.

Earlier this month, a resident in Bethel, Ohio reported to a state forester unusual damage on maple trees. It turns out the damage was caused by the Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB), one of the worst invasive species threats to hardwood trees in North America. This is the latest in a string of ALB infestations discovered by citizens in the United States. Unfortunately, the infestations exist for 5–10 years before anyone notices a problem.

There are two good reasons why ALB gets reported by the public:

1) it is big and weird-looking; and

2) there are no good survey methods.

We have some big native longhorned beetles that resemble ALB, but they are not likely to show up in your yard. ALB, on the other hand, feeds on and eventually kills maple, willow, horsechestnut, elm, and other common yard and street trees. Reliable surveys for ALB require tree climbers. From the ground, the best that can be done is to scan the trunks of susceptible trees looking for half-inch diameter exit holes. In the past, Oregon survey crews did this, but looking for a needle in a haystack would likely be more productive.

Clearly, we need more trained people looking for ALB. We think a better strategy is to train master gardeners, arborists, and other people that are on the front lines to keep their eyes open. The same could be said for dozens of other invasive species on Oregon’s 100 Most Dangerous Invaders List http://www.oregon.gov/OISC/most_dangerous.shtml. Each year there are surveys for only a small fraction of these species.

What can we do? The reality is we need both a robust survey program and an educated citizenry.

Targeted surveys are often critical to successful early detection and rapid response (EDRR) programs. They can be very efficient, especially if effective traps are available. Gypsy moth traps, for example, can attract moths from a quarter of a mile away! Efficient traps are a big reason why we’ve been able to keep the gypsy moth from establishing itself in Oregon, despite repeated introductions during the last 30 years.

When an invasive species isn’t detected early, eradication is often impossible or hugely expensive. The folks that live near Bethel, Ohio are about to find that out. If this ALB infestation is as big and well entrenched as the others that were finally noticed by citizens, millions of dollars will be spent on eradication, and thousands of trees will be destroyed. Check out the video called Lurking in the Trees for a scary look at what happened when ALB was found in Massachusetts (the Oregon Department of Agriculture has copies available for lending).

Recognizing that government can only do so much and budgets aren’t keeping up with the introduction of new invasives, we’ve got to get smarter about our defenses. I don’t think private industry is the only answer—there is no profit to be made from invasive species EDRR, and even well-trained arborists can’t cover Oregon’s geography. What we need is lots of people sufficiently well informed to recognize new weeds and potential pests. Then we need them to report their findings so that the species can be identified and the appropriate responses taken. Digital pictures, many taken with cell phones, are becoming an important tool for transmitting pictures of suspicious weeds, bugs, and snails. Even if the quality isn’t the best, an expert is usually able to determine if further followup is warranted. In Oregon, we’ve made it easy for people to report new sightings with our telephone and online hotlines: 1-866-INVADER or http://oregoninvasiveshotline.org/.

If we work together, maybe we can avoid what just happened in Bethel, Ohio. ALB would be very destructive to Oregon; we don’t want it here. Because there is neither an effective trap nor survey, it is up to all of us to remain vigilant. Keep your eyes open, and report it if you see any big weird beetles, pinky finger-sized exit holes in tree trunks, or anything else that doesn’t look like it would be good for Oregon. Collective vigilance is our only hope.

Dan Hilburn

Calculating Our Chances of Getting Zebra Mussels

2011-06-15T21:29:00.000-07:00

What are the odds Oregon will become infested with zebra or quagga mussels? These invasive freshwater mussels spread quickly in the East after being introduced to the Great Lakes in the 1980s. In 2007, they appeared in Western waters, and since then, they have spread to several western states. To date, Oregon has been lucky; as of today, we don’t know of any bodies of water in Oregon that are infested. We also know that mussels are excellent hitchhikers on trailored boats. What are the odds we can keep Oregon zebra/quagga mussel free? Are we doomed, or can we keep them out? It would be nice to know. Maybe we can calculate the odds.

Since I read my first science fiction book as a boy, I have been fascinated with the idea that there might be life elsewhere in the universe. Frank Drake is famous for his 1961 equation to calculate the number of other civilizations in our galaxy. The equation looks like this:

N = N * f_p *n_e* f_l* f_i * f_c* f_L

where

N = number of stars in our galaxy

f_p = fraction of stars that have planets

n_e = number of planets per star capable of sustaining life

f_l = fraction of planets in n_e where life evolves

f_i = fraction of f_l where intelligent life evolves

f_c = fraction of f_i that communicate

f_L = fraction of planet’s life during which communicating civilizations live

Because there are no data for any of these factors except the first one, it isn’t a reliable estimate, but it sure stimulates the imagination! There is even a calculator on the Internet that allows you to input values that make sense to you and see what the odds are that we have galactic neighbors: http://www.activemind.com/Mysterious/Topics/SETI/drake_equation.html.

We can use a similar approach to estimate our chances of getting zebra/quagga mussels. Here is my amaterish attempt:

P = (N * f_o * f_z * f_d * f_in * f_a * f_e) * 100

where

P = probability the zebra or quagga mussels will become established in Oregon in any particular year

N = number of boats launches in the state/year

f_o = fraction of launched boats coming from out-of-state

f_z = fraction of out-of-state boats infested with zebra/quagga mussels

f_d = fraction of infested boats not cleaned by owners

f_in = fraction of infested, non-cleaned boats not intercepted/cleaned at check stations

f_a = fraction of mussels on dirty boats that are alive at the time of relaunch

f_e = fraction of mussel introductions that result in established populations

Now comes the fun part. Just like a someone searching for extraterrestrial intelligence, we can take the meager amount of data available, make a series of assumptions, and see what pops out of the equation. Here goes:

N = 375,000 (average of best estimates from Glenn Dolphin, Oregon Marine Board and Rick Boatner, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife; there are 46,000 launches during the Lower Willamette River Spring Chinook fishery season alone; 151,691 boats are registered in Oregon)

f_o = 1/6 (based on 20% of boats that stopped for inspections in 2010 were from out-of-state, but most of the data came from inspection sites near Oregon’s borders)

f_z = 1/5,000 (my guess based on 2,852 boats inspected last year*; none had zebra/quagga mussels, yet we have had two cases of infested boats reported in OR)

f_d = ¾ (my guess that only a quarter of boats are cleaned by owners between launches)

f_in = 9/10 (my guess that only 1 in 10 infested boats are intercepted and cleaned at inspection stations)

f_a = ½ (my guess that half the time mussels on infested boats dry out and die before relaunch)

f_e = 1/10 (my guess that 90% of introductions don’t result in reproducing populations)

P = (375,000 * .17 * .0002 * .75 * .9 * .5 * .1) * 100

P = 43% chance zebra mussels will become established in Oregon this year

Based on this admittedly simple analysis, it shouldn’t surprise anyone if zebra/quagga mussels become established in Oregon sometime in the next few years. Of course, the odds could change. If the fraction of boats coming into the state infested with mussels increases, our odds of avoiding infestation go down. This is likely to happen as water bodies closer and closer to Oregon become infested. On the other hand, if we increase the number of people cleaning their boats between launches, we can improve our odds of staying zebra/quagga mussel-free.

Imagine if 99% of people cleaned their boats between launchings (f_d = .01). Keeping all other factors the same, this equation predicts that the probability of establishment would drop to just 0.57% per year. I like those odds better! Let’s all clean our boats between launchings. It’s not that hard. The Marine Board has excellent information on how to do it right at :

http://www.oregon.gov/OSMB/news/2007/CleanBoat.shtml#Boaters_Asked_to__Never_Launch_a_Dirty_Boat_. We’re Oregonians, if anybody can beat the odds, it’s us.

Dan Hilburn

*Dolphin, G. & R. Boatner. 2010. Oregon Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Program. 2010 Program Report. Oregon State Marine Board, Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife. Feb. 2011. 22pp.

The Rise & Fall of Wild Parakeets in Oregon

2011-06-05T19:31:00.000-07:00

Did you know there used to be feral parakeets in Oregon? Between 1982 and 2003, there were regular sightings in Oregon, though never very many.* The species was a South American native known as the monk or Quaker parakeet (Myiopsitta monachus).

We used to worry about monk parakeets becoming an agricultural pest here. In South America, large flocks can damage fruits and grains, and we have plenty of fruit and grain crops in Oregon. Monk parakeet populations were increasing exponentially in the United States until 2003.^*

These beautiful birds make huge communal nests. At one time, up to 24 parakeets were living in nests at Portland International Airport (PDX) near the cargo terminal. They were fun to watch and a hit at nearby bird feeders. One of the staff members told me someone had rescued a baby parakeet that had fallen out of the nest; they had taken it home for a pet. The family had a newborn infant, and the parakeet quickly learned to imitate the baby’s cry. It was driving the parents crazy because they couldn’t distinguish the baby’s cry from the bird’s imitation, so they re-released it back into the wild!

The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) debated whether or not to take action. In general, eradicating a new potential pest before it gets permanently established is a good policy. Birds, however, were not our normal business. Over the years, we’ve learned that when in doubt, do a risk assessment. So we did. In fact, a risk assessment of monk parakeets was one of the fist risk assessment ODA ever conducted: http://www.oregon.gov/OISC/docs/pdf/monkpara.pdf. The conclusion in 2003 was that the risk was moderate—with a very high level of uncertainty. It was also clear from a review of the literature that people love these birds, and control programs tend to meet fierce resistance from the public. We decided to watch and wait.

It was the right decision. A decade ago, there were two sites with active nests: PDX and Scio. The colonies hung on for several years, then died out or moved out on their own. There hasn’t been a monk parakeet sighted in Oregon on the Audubon Society Christmas bird count since 2006.

The national picture has also changed. Importation, once unrestricted, is now regulated, and this species is no longer important in the pet trade. Feral populations peaked around 2004 and have been declining ever since. There are still plenty in Florida and other warmer states, though they haven’t become the plague that some people predicted.

An interesting wrinkle in this story is that there used to be a native parakeet in the Southeast. The Carolina parakeet (Conuropsis carolinesis) went extinct in the early part of the last century. No one is quite sure why, but it was heavily hunted for its decorative feathers. It could be that monk parakeets are refilling that empty niche.

Even though the parakeet nests in Oregon have been abandoned, you don’t have to go far to see feral parakeets—there is an active nest now in Yacolt, WA. If you go to check them out and one of them cries like a baby, you’ll know where it came from.

Dan Hilburn

*Butler, C. 2003. Species Status Review: Monk Parakeets in Oregon. Oregon Birds 29(2):97-100.

Photo from Columbiariverimages.com

Cricket Crisis

2011-05-24T10:45:00.000-07:00

Crickets are raised by the millions for feeding lizards, snakes, and other pets. In addition, these insects have played an important role in Chinese, Japanese, and Native American cultures as a symbol of good fortune, vitality, and prosperity.

In the United States, the pet store species is the house cricket, Acheta domesticus. It is not a native species, but it is not considered to be invasive, even though feral populations occur in the United States.

In recent years, cricket producers have been struggling to control a virus, Acheta domesticus densovirus AdDNV, that is spreading through their colonies. The virus is thought to have originated from Europe.

European cricket producers have switched to other species not susceptible to AdDNV. Now the American cricket industry is pressuring the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to allow them to import the field cricket Gryllus assimilis from Europe. Another non-native species, the field cricket has already been introduced and has become established in Texas and Florida. Two other alternatives are also under consideration: rearing field-collected G. assimilis from the United States or importing resistant A. domesticus from Europe.

The USDA is doing the right thing by conducting a risk assessment.* It seems to me that the alternatives being considered are low risk to agriculture and the natural environment in Oregon—they are, however, not the best idea. Bringing in stock from overseas is almost certainly how the virus arrived in the United States in the first place. What the cricket industry should be doing is developing rearing techniques for a native species. What is wrong with good old American crickets?

This situation reminds me a lot of what has happened with honey bees and bumble bees. Commercial sales of these species have been little regulated because they are not considered “pests.” Oregon’s apiary regulations were repealed, except for hive registration, in 1993. Importation of commercially available non-native bumble bees is allowed by our neighbor states. It is easy to order live bees via the Internet and have them shipped almost anywhere in the world.

The downside of this convenience is that we’re sharing our bee production problems. Movement of bees has spread bee diseases and mite pests across continents and around the world. For the most part, the beekeepers that benefit from the convenience are the same people that suffer the consequences. The same would be true for cricket producers. Should we care?

Does it matter if cricket farmers shoot themselves in the foot by importing exotic crickets? It would matter if the diseases spread to native species. A couple of species of bumble bees that used to be common in the Northwest are now quite rare. Could it be that imported bumble bees brought a disease that spread to the wild? Some scientists think so, but there is no proof.

This summer, the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) will be conducting the first ever statewide pollinator survey, thanks to a grant from USDA. We need baseline data on pollinator distribution and abundance. Without it, a species could disappear without anyone even noticing. We probably should be doing something similar with our native crickets—and perhaps other species that aren’t charismatic megafauna, but are vital to the health of our agriculture industry and natural resources.

Dan Hilburn

*Meissner H. & R. Ahern. 2011. Risk associated with importation and interstate movement of Gryllus assimilis and Acheta domesticus (Orthoptera:Gryllidae) for commercial purposes. USDA. Version 2.0. 5 pp.

Invasive Species Double-edged Sword for Nurseries

2011-05-13T22:53:00.000-07:00

The nursery industry has a love-hate relationship with invasive species regulations. On the one hand, exotic diseases like Phytophthora ramorum, a.k.a. sudden oak death, threaten the industry with direct losses through disease infections and, more importantly, indirect losses through restrictions and lost markets from quarantines imposed by other countries and states. As you’d expect, the nursery industry is a big supporter of keeping all sorts of harmful pests, plant diseases, and weeds out of Oregon.

They even tax themselves to support an emergency fund to address pest and disease emergencies that might impact their industry. This fund was tapped recently to help eradicate an infestation of Japanese beetles at Portland International Airport.

On the other hand, some plants introduced via the nursery trade have become noxious weeds, so the industry is also part of the problem. English ivy that drapes many of the trees in our natural areas is a well known example. The yellow flowers of Scotch broom that are appearing now along roadsides are another reminder. Both were introduced and sold for decades as ornamental plants. Understandably, the industry is concerned about what plants are added to prohibited plant lists and noxious weed quarantines. Today English ivy and Scotch broom have been phased out of the nursery trade. It is illegal to import, propagate, or sell them in Oregon.

Fifteen years ago when we first approached the Oregon Association of Nurseries (OAN) about banning sales of English ivy, the Executive Director told me, “That will never happen!” He told me one well-known nursery owner had “put his kids through college on sales of English ivy.” Since then the nursery industry has seen the writing on the wall, and OAN has supported recent additions of problem feral ornamentals to the noxious weed list. It is no surprise that a vocal minority still objects and thinks government should keep its nose out of what plants people can buy.

The Department started phasing out butterfly bush in 2008. A decade ago, land managers began to notice butterfly bush thriving on river banks, roadsides, and forest clearcuts. It showed all the signs of becoming as weedy as Scotch broom. After the State Weed Board added it to the official list of noxious weeds, I reluctantly cut down the three bushes in my yard. I love butterflies, so it was not something I wanted to do. However, this story is going to have a happy ending. The nursery industry responded to our regulations by developing new seedless hybrid varieties, analogous to seedless grapes or seedless watermelons. We adopted a 98% reduced fertility requirement and set up a process for independent review of fertility trials through Oregon State University. A dozen new seedless varieties have been approved in the past few months. They just began to trickle down to garden centers and catalogs. These complex inter-specific hybrids can’t revert to the wild type, and they produce little, if any, viable seed.

I’m holding a couple of spots in my yard for them. In reviewing the approval paperwork, I’ve seen pictures from the trials, and the plants are spectacular. They are compact, have more flowers, and have longer blooming periods than the older seeded varieties, and they still attract butterflies!

This is a big deal, and not just for me. It is the first time plant breeders have considered and successfully addressed invasiveness in developing new ornamental varieties. Oregon is leading the way. Regulators and plant breeders all over the country are watching us. Hopefully this is just the beginning. Oregon State University has recently hired a young plant breeder, Dr. Ryan Contraras, to develop new ornamental varieties. I toured his lab, greenhouse, and field plots last week. He’s started work on a dozen different types of plants—from Norway maple to ornamental grasses. In several cases, sterility to prevent invasiveness is a primary goal of the breeding.

If it ever warms up this spring and you get a chance to visit your local garden store, you’ll see a large variety of plants. You shouldn’t miss the few bad apples that have been phased out. While you’re there, if you see any of the new seedless butterfly bush varieties, like Blue Chip, White Icing, or Peach Cobbler, and are seduced into buying some by the gorgeous pictures on the label, remember. . . save some for me!

Dan Hilburn

Spiders from Spain and Other Thoughts

2011-05-06T07:01:00.000-07:00

An email in my Inbox this week included a question about importing spiders from Spain! Are there any regulations? Is a permit required? I’ve handled some interesting questions, but never this particular one. Working through our partners at US Department of Agriculture (USDA), we asked for more information—always a good first step, especially in this case, where the desired species du jour was the Mediterranean recluse, Loxosceles rufescens, a cousin of the poisonous brown recluse. The person wanted to import them to Portland, Oregon for “research.”

Ironically, an advisory committee is wrestling with proposed regulations related to non-native invertebrates as I write this blog.

There are a couple of interesting philosophical questions behind proposing regulations for non-native invertebrates. First, should the state use an “Approved List” or “Prohibited List” approach? An approved list would mean that species not on the list would be prohibited. A prohibited list would work the opposite way; only the species on the list would be prohibited—everything else would be allowed. In informal regulatory circles, these approaches are referred to as: “When in doubt, keep it out,” versus “Not a clue, let it through.” Anyone detect an echo of “Big Government” vs. “Personal Freedom?”

Most government regulations in this arena use prohibited lists, e.g., Oregon’s noxious weed lists. If a plant isn’t on the list, you can import it, propagate it, and sell it. Oregon uses a different approach for birds, fish, mammals, and other vertebrates. If it’s not on Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s approved list (actually several lists for non-regulated, controlled, noncontrolled species), it’s prohibited. Here is the regulation:

635-056-0040

Requirements for Importation and Possession of Live Wildlife

For species, subspecies or hybrids listed as Prohibited or those species not yet classified, a permit will

not be issued allowing the importation and possession of live wildlife, except to American Zoo and

Aquarium Association (AZA) accredited facilities, colleges, universities and those facilities which can

demonstrate compliance with standards as provided in OAR 635-056-0050(2). For species, subspecies or

hybrids listed as Controlled, an importation permit may be required as set forth by the commission. For

species, subspecies or hybrids listed as Noncontrolled, no ODFW importation permit is required.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is proposing to use a similar approach for invertebrates, such as insects, centipedes, earthworms, etc. We think it makes sense to publish an approved list of the invertebrates that are used for pet food, classrooms projects, biological control, etc. These would not require a permit. Odd balls like spiders from Spain would require a permit. That would give ODA the ability to assess the risk of a proposed introduction and deny the request or impose safeguards if there is a risk of the species becoming a problem.

The second big question we’re wrestling with is where to draw the line on what species to include in the regulation. Should we focus just on agricultural pests, just insects, or every little critter that walks on the land or flies through the air? What about bees, spiders, millipedes, mites, earthworms, and nematodes? I have personally handled requests for bees from China, earthworms from Belgium, lightning bugs from North Carolina, and snails from California. The reality is we live in a global market that includes trade in all sorts of live animals.

Land invertebrates are actually only half the question. What about marine species, such as jellyfish, sanddollars, copepods, and, sand shrimp? Should these be regulated? If someone wanted to introduce an Atlantic jellyfish to an Oregon estuary, would that be okay? I am not aware of any applicable regulations.

Marine species would be a world away from what ODA has regulated in the past, but if the field is empty, maybe someone has to step up and occupy it. The new definition of plant pest given to us by our elected representatives is quite broad and has a lot of latitude for interpretation:

As used in ORS 570.210 to 570.225, “plant pest” means:

(1) A disease, microscopic organism, insect, nematode, arthropod, parasite or a noxious weed as defined in ORS 569.175, capable of having a significant adverse effect on the environmental quality of the state or of causing a significant level of economic damage in this state, including but not limited to damage to agricultural, horticultural or forest plants, crops, commodities or products; and

(2) Any biotic agent identified in an order or rule of the State Department of Agriculture as capable of having a significant adverse effect on the environmental quality of the state, or of causing a significant level of economic damage in this state, including but not limited to damage to agricultural, horticultural or forest plants, crops, commodities or products. [2009 c.98 §4]

Where would you draw the line?

Now back to the Spanish spiders. Because USDA does not regulate spiders (nor does any other agency), ODA made the call. We researched L. rufescens, combed through our authority, talked it over, and replied, “Not allowed without a permit.” Because there is no established mechanism for getting a permit, it’s not a very good answer. Up until now, we’ve never issued state permits for invertebrates, but we were given the authority to do so when the legislature updated our plant quarantine laws. It’s time for us to figure out answers to these questions out and get a system in place. What would you recommend?

Dan Hilburn

Burning Lessons From Firewood Legislation

2011-05-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

Oregon is close to having a law that keeps potentially bug and disease-infested firewood from being sold in our state. That's important. Firewood is a vector of invasive woodborers, such as Emerald ash borer, Asian longhorned beetle, and European wood wasp. These are just some of the invasive species known to hitchhike in firewood. We don't have them here in Oregon, and we definitely don't want them.

The legislative process wasn't easy; in fact, it was exhausting, but it was interesting, and we were relentless in our pursuit of protecting Oregon's 31 million acres of forests.

This week, after five sets of amendments, House Bill 2122 passed out of the Senate Environment Committee. It now goes to the Legislative Council to become an engrossed bill, and then moves to the full Senate for a floor vote. After that, it goes back to the House for their concurrence (because they passed an un-amended version), then on the Governor's desk for his signature. The ink drying on that piece of paper will be a welcome sight indeed!

Once the Governor signs the bill, the rule-making process beings to turn the authority to regulate imported firewood into actual regulations!

But like everything else in life, there are lessons learned from this firewood legislation journey:

Your simple idea for a straightforward bill will come back from Legislative Council in barely recognizable legalese. Make an appointment with the drafter, and discuss whether his/her proposed language matches your ideas and intent; it won't be obvious from the draft bill.
Talk to as many people as you can that might be impacted by the law, including opponents. In this particular case, the fact that Oregon's firewood industry is very decentralized made it difficult to dot all of the i's and cross all of the t's before taking the bill to both House and Senate Committees. If people know you have listened to their concerns, they are less likely to torpedo your bill. Oregon Loggers Association switched their position from opposition to neutral on our firewood bill after we met with them and developed a mutually acceptable amendment. Supporters are important, but neutralizing opposition is critical.
Find some legislators, preferably from both political parties, that like your bill. Having legislators familiar and knowledgeable about the issue will help to generate "aye" votes from other committee members.
Keep in close contact with committee administrators, and be as helpful as possible to make the bill a success for the legislators on their committees. Committee administrators can work miracles.
Finally, align yourself with people that have the drive, passion, and tenacity to shepherd the bill. Through the ups and downs of the legislative process, it helps to have people to brainstorm with, think strategically, and shore one another up when patience runs thin!

There is more work to do. Not only do we still have to develop and adopt Administrative Rules (the actual regulations), but we also need to get the work out to firewood dealers, retail businesses and the general public: Buy and Burn Local (Pacific Northwest) firewood. Some people haven't heard the message. This week, a colleague at Oregon State University sent a cell phone picture of an out-of-state recreational vehicle traveling through Oregon with firewood stacked on the bumper. There is a good chance there were live insects in the wood, and I'm sure the campers didn't have a clue they were putting Oregon forests at risk.

I wish they had seen this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN3Aa-tjA_E) so that they, too, could learn a lesson about not moving firewood.

Dan Hilburn

Slug Slime and Other Weirdness

2011-04-22T21:39:00.000-07:00

If you’ve ever planted a garden in western Oregon, you’re acquainted with slugs, or at least their damage. Did you know these pests are invasive species? Nine out of the 10 species of pest slugs in Oregon are non-native.* Like a lot of other little invertebrates, they’ve hitchhiked around the world in soil, including potted plants.

If you have a hankering to find slugs, the best time to do so is early morning. They don’t like sun, which may explain why they thrive around here—especially when one considers the lack of sun we’ve experienced this spring . . .

I share my garden with several invasive species and the native hotdog-sized Pacific banana slug, Ariolimax columbianus. I’m on a first name basis with these guys. I call them all “Larry.” Banana slugs are too big for me to kill without feeling bad, so I give them flying lessons every time I encounter one. They always seem to come back for more, so maybe they like it. Larry is a real Oregonian, and not generally considered a pest, but he sure likes my lettuce,and last year he nearly ate my precious giant pumpkin seedling before I spotted him chowing down from a second story window.

Larry and I have a hands-off relationship. His slime is amazing. It does not wash off—soap and water won’t touch it. A quick Internet search indicates scientists have noticed that banana slug slime sticks particularly well to skin, it might have antiseptic properties, and someday it could be useful as a biological glue.

If it weren’t for the slime, I might try Larry for dinner. Other people have eaten them.** Oregon escargot anyone? Regular escargot comes from European brown garden snails, Helix aspersa, another garden invader. Brown garden snails are established along the Oregon coast and in numerous residential neighborhoods in our cities and towns. Every year, I find a few on the sidewalk near the my office. Their shells are fragile, so I suspect they graze the sidewalk for calcium, a much-needed nutrient that fortifies their shells and protects their soft innards.

As if encountering banana slugs in my garden and watching snails grazing on sidewalks isn’t weird enough, years ago I encountered a slug at eye-level dangling in mid-air from a tree branch. It gets weirder. Some slugs mate in mid-air! If you don’t believe me, check out this video: http://beestingbrose.blogspot.com/2009/08/elegant-slugs.html. Don’t try this at home!

Dan Hilburn

*http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nurspest/slugs.htm

**http://rickshawunschooling.blogspot.com/2007/10/wild-food-killing-our-own-meat.html

Invasive Species: Melting Pot or Natural Disaster?

2011-04-15T23:17:00.000-07:00

Two very different articles on invasive species appeared in my email box recently. Mother Nature’s Melting Pot* encourages us to “embrace the impurity of our cosmopolitan natural world.” In contrast, Should Biological Invasions Be Managed as Natural Disasters?** promotes building “a culture of safety and resilience,” requiring a “national and international commitment to prevention, preparedness, and vulnerability reduction.”

A similar contrast is evident in two recent local events. The Oregon Invasive Spiecies Council (OISC) held a statewide summit on invasive species last fall to highlight the importance of invasive species issues in Oregon. A few months later, the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) held a conference on “Environmentalism Gone Awry: The war on invasive speces – the need for a rational assessment of the costs and benefits of invasive species control.” Clearly some people see invasive species as one of the worst environmental problems we face; while others wonder, What’s the big deal? They’re going to get here sooner or later anyway, so why should we fight it?

How can people see this issue so differently? The first problem is a matter of definition. Invasive species doubters point to all the beneficial plants and animals that are not native. It is true that most of the food we eat comes from non-native plants and animals. It is also true that the grass in our lawns and the plants in our yards are mostly not Oregon natives either. This argument is a red herring (not native?). I think we can agree that lots of exotic species are beneficial and integral to modern society. Going completely native is not possible in this day and age, nor is it desirable.

Second, it is easy to find examples of invasive species response programs that didn’t work. Perhaps the most famous was the attempt to eradicate imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, from the Southeast using Mirex. Rachael Carson’s book, Silent Spring, was published during this project, and shined a spotlight on the ecological dangers of wide-area use of persistant pesticides. Sudden oak death, Phytophthora ramorum, provides a less dramatic example from right here in Oregon. Starting in 2001, a consortium of state and federal agencies attempted to eradicate this disease from the forest just north of Brookings. It didn’t work, though we did dramatically slow down the spread of this invasive disease.

The arguments that invasive species are no big deal or not worth fighting fall away if you focus not on all non-native species but on the small percentage that are really pests or weeds – the real invasive species. Oregon statute (ORS 570.750 (2)) recognizes: “invasions by harmful nonnative species are damaging to the environment and cause economic hardship. . .” The key word is harmful. There are hundreds of non-native species in Oregon that don’t fit this definition. We’re not talking about those.

Secondly, you can’t talk about the failed programs while ignoring the successes. There are many, many examples of successful invasive species response programs that get very little recognition. It is easy to write a book or hold a conference about about the big in-your-face failures because the consequences are obvious. It is much harder to interest people in the success stories. Anyone for a conference on why we don’t have gypsy moths in Oregon? Would you buy a book entitled; “Kudzu, The Worst Weed That Doesn’t Occur Here”? Yet Oregon has a proud history of successful early detection and rapid response against gypsy moth, kudzu, and many other invasive species.

I suspect that there is another factor common to people that don’t believe invasive species are a serious problem. I’ll bet they don’t get out much and/or they wouldn’t know a native plant from an invasive weed if they tripped over one. Many people are pretty well divorced from nature these days. Do you know which of the birds at your feeder are native? Exotic? Invasive? Congratualtions if you do -- if you don’t, you should borrow a field guide from the library or Google a local bird list and learn the common birds (ditto for trees, wildflowers, butterflies, etc.). Knowing what you’re looking at adds a great deal to one’s appreciation of nature and makes it easy to understand the importance of keeping invasive species out of places where they don’t belong.

Dan Hilburn
*Raffles, H. 2011. Mother Nature’s Melting Pot. The New York Times op-ed April 3, 2011 on page WK12 of the New York edition.

**Ricciardi, A., M.E. Palmer, and N.D. Yan. 2011. Should Biological Invasions Be Managed as Natural Disasters? BioScience. Vol. 61(4) 312-317.

Native Pests and Invasive Species

2011-04-10T08:35:00.000-07:00

Periodically, ants invade my kitchen. They like our compost bucket and my multi-grain Cheerios. Like most entomologists, I have a relatively high tolerance for bugs, but I draw the line at ants in my cereal. The most common house ant in this area is the odorus house ant, Tapinoma sessile. These small black ants are attracted to moisture and sweets; that’s why they like kitchens. Interestingly, they are not an invasive species; odorus house ants are native. We invaded their territory, not the other way around.

In fact, most of the ants we have in Oregon are native, and thankfully most of them prefer outdoor living. There are exceptions, the pavement ant (Tetramorium caespitum), a recent introduction here, is another home invader. Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, and red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, have also been collected in Oregon, though the former has a very limited distribution and the latter is not known to be established. Both are well known invasive pests in other regions.

Another common Oregon house guest, the western boxelder bug, Leptocoris rubrolineatus, is a second example of a native insect that acts like an invasive species. Boxelder bugs invade homes in the fall. During spring, they appear again at windows trying to find their way outdoors. Except for being a nuisance, they are not harmful. In contrast, the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, does the same indoor/outdoor thing but is a serious pest of fruits and vegetables; it is a bonafied invasive species.

The world of weeds provides other examples. Western juniper, Juniperus occidentalis, can be quite invasive, but it’s homegrown. Salt cedar, Tamarix aphylla, has similar invasive tendencies, but is not from around here. Both can be aggressive invaders.

Early spring is the season where bedstraw (Galium) grows like gangbusters in my yard. It is coming on strong in my wildflowers meadow right now. I don’t like pulling it because it sticks like velcro to gloves. My wife get a rash when she handles it. Some bedstraws are native, others are not. One of these days I should get this particular species identified. To me it’s a weed, but it might be a common native known as cleavers or sticky willy, Galium aparine. I think it is easier for me to curse it, spray it, and pull it if I imagine it being an invasive species. No doubt that is why I haven’t bothered to bring in a sample. If that sticky nasty stuff turned out to be a native Oregon wildflower, I’d just cry—as I continue to curse it, spray it, and pull it . . . .

Dan Hilburn

Invasive Species Hopscotch

2011-04-03T10:58:00.000-07:00

Years ago, the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) responded to a call from a railroad company that reported a worker had been stung by ants. I went was sent to investigate. The train was stopped on a siding in Salem. One of the boxcars contained cotton seed destined for cattle feed. It took me only a few minutes to find red imported fire ants (RIFA), Solenopsis invicta, in the cargo. There were a lot of them. The boxcar was sealed up and fumigated.

RIFA is one of the old-guard invasive species in this country. Native to South America, these ants were introduced to Mobile, Alabama in the 1930s. They have since spread throughout the entire southeastern United States, and in the 1990s, they made the hop to southern California. As their name suggests, fire ants have a powerful sting -- it is painful to humans and fatal to baby birds and newborn animals. The mounds they build interfere with machinery. RIFA is old news in the Southeast, but it is back in the scientific spotlight.

Scott Bauer, a U.S. Department of Agriculture researcher, has been studying the genetics of RIFA. He and his collaborators collected ants from 2,144 RIFA colonies in 11 countries, including newly invaded sites in the Caribbean, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, and China. Genetic analysis indicates these new invasions are coming from the United States, not RIFA’s homeland in South America.*

Nik Grunwald at Oregon State University is uncovering a similar hopscotch pattern of spread by sudden oak death (SOD), Phytophthora ramorum. There are three clonal lineages of SOD in North America. One was introduced into California. Another first appeared in British Columbia or Washington, and a third hopscotched here from Europe. Amazingly, scientists haven’t yet found this pathogen’s native range! It must be pretty inconspicuous at home.

Another invasive species playing hopscotch is the granulate ambrosia beetle, Xylosandrus crassiusculus. Home for this wood borer is Africa and Asia, but it invaded the southeastern United States in the 1970s. In 2004, we caught a bunch of them in The Dalles. They weren’t coming from Africa or Asia; they were hitchhiking in green railroad ties imported from the Southeast. It took us a couple of years to eradicate them.

Secondary invasions may be more important than we realize. Populations of invasive species are often much higher in invaded territories outside their native range and those populations may be pre-adapted for playing invasive species hopscotch.

*Science News. March 26, 2011. Vol. 179(7) pg. 15.

Dan Hilburn

Oregon Gambles with Giant Reed Grass

2011-03-18T08:01:00.000-07:00

Oregon has begun a giant experiment with giant reed grass, Arundo donax. Over the next few weeks, truckloads of rhizomes will arrive in Morrow County. The rhizomes will be planted on several hundred acres of farmland in the hopes that 20-ft tall canes will someday be a substitute for coal to run the Boardman Power Plant. If successful, this experiment could be an important step toward a sustainable, carbon-neutral energy supply. That would be a very good thing. If it fails, we could have a major ecological problem. That would be a very bad thing.

Giant reed grass is attractive as a source of biomass fuel because it grows fast, like a weed. In fact it is a serious noxious weed in some places, including southern states like California, Texas, and Florida. The Global Invasive Species Database lists Arundo donax as one of the top 100 worst invasive species in the world http://www.issg.org/database/species/search.asp?st=100ss. Interestingl,y giant reed grass plantations are the source of clarinet, oboe, and basson reeds.

Why would anyone plant a known noxious weed? That is a fair question. At the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA), we are concerned, but we’re also confident that the test phase can be done in a manner that will allow Portland General Electric (PGE) to assess the fuel potential of this crop while ODA and Oregon State University assess it’s weediness. Oregon is on the edge of the range of this grass. It grows well and becomes invasive in warm, wet habitats. Giant reed grass has been sold as a nursery ornamental in the Pacific Northwest for years. It has also been tested as a crop in Prosser, Washington. It has never become invasive here. At this latitude, it doesn’t flower or produce seed.

We can hope that Oregon is in a zone where giant reed grass will grow under cultivation with human assisstance, but not in the wild where it could be weedy. One good thing about giant reed grass is that it easy to see because it is so tall. So we’re all observers in this experiment. Keep your eyes open. If you see a very tall grass growing most likely in riparian areas, contact us at: 1-866-INVADER or oregoninvasiveshotline.org. Good luck PGE, and good luck Oregon. Roll the dice.

Dan Hilburn

Sterile Butterfly Bush Coming This Spring

2011-03-05T16:01:00.000-08:00

Ten new varieties of sterile butterfly bush have been tested and approved. They’ll be available in garden centers in Oregon this spring. I’m going to buy some. They are handsome plants with long flowering periods, and they produce little or no seed. Plant breeders have succeeded in enhancing the desirable features of butterfly bush while eliminating it’s potential to be a noxious weed. Hallelujah!

I suspect gardeners are going to flock to these new varieties like butterflies to the flowers. The pictures are gorgeous, and the plants are more compact with shorter stems and bigger flower clusters.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) developed a process in which nurseries can have their varieties evaluated. A 98 percent reduction in fertility is required for approval. The table below shows data for the most recent batch evaluated for Ball Ornamentals. The varieties in bold meet Oregon’s sterility standard. All of the approved varieties are complex interspecific hybrids--in other words, they can’t revert to the original species, Buddleia davidii, that has been the cause of so much concern in the past.

Mean fertility of control (fertile) cultivars was 7.32 seeds per capsule. The fertility reported for each cultivar is its relative fertility compared to 7.32 seeds per capsule. Cultivars in bold italics are exempt based on 98% reduction in fertility.

Cultivar % Fertility

FLUTTERBY GRANDÉ™ Blueberry Cobbler Nectar Bush 0

FLUTTERBY PETITE™ Lavender Nectar Bush 9.0

FLUTTERBY™ Peace Nectar Bush 122

FLUTTERBY™ Pink Nectar Bush 2.0

FLUTTERBY™ Lavender Nectar Bush 50

FLUTTERBY PETITE™ Dark Pink Nectar Bush 13.1

FLUTTERBY PETITE™ Snow White Nectar Bush 0.4

FLUTTERBY GRANDÉ™ Peach Cobbler Nectar Bush 0

FLUTTERBY PETITE™ Blue Heaven Nectar Bush 5.6

FLUTTERBY™ Mauve Pink Nectar Bush 5.9

FLUTTERBY GRANDÉ™ Tangerine Dream Nectar Bush 0.4

FLUTTERBY GRANDÉ™ Sweet Marmalade Nectar Bush 0

FLUTTERBY PETITE™ Tutti Fruitti Pink Nectar Bush 4.6

FLUTTERBY GRANDÉ™ Vanilla Nectar Bush 0

_____________________________________________________________________

More sterile varieties are in the pipeline, and there should be plenty of choice for gardeners in the future. You can find the complete list of the approved varieties at:

http://www.oregon.gov/ODA/PLANT/NURSERY/buddleja_process.shtml.

Breeding out invasiveness is a new concept; I hope it catches on. There are quite a number of other ornamental plants that have weedy tendencies. If would be nice if gardeners could enjoy them now without causing noxious weed problems for future generations.

Dan Hilburn