[APWG] NEWS: Conservation Strategies Must Shift with GlobalEnvironmental Change

[Marc Imlay]

We have chosen natural areas to remove the invasive plants from that still
have mostly native plants in the herbaceous, shrub, and tree layers with a
high biodiversity. We have found dramatic recovery of the native species
into the areas where the non-native plants have been removed in less than 5
years after removal. Our work is site based rather than weed based;
therefore we remove all class 1 and 2 invasive species. We do not need to
plant any natives in these areas except occasionally on steep slopes to
control erosion. 

 

These sites become sources of native plants for contiguous areas, especially
when resources are available to remove invasive species by their land
managers.   We also tend to focus our efforts in areas that have sufficient
control of deer in Maryland, especially managed hunts, since the native
predators, wolves and cougars, were removed in the 19th century.   Cheers. 

 

Marc Imlay, PhD 

 

Conservation biologist, Anacostia Watershed Society 

(301-699-6204, 301-283-0808 301-442-5657 cell)

Board member of the Mid-Atlantic Exotic Pest Plant Council, 

Hui o Laka at Kokee State Park, Hawaii 

Vice president of the Maryland Native Plant Society, 

Chair of the Biodiversity and Habitat Stewardship Committee 

for the Maryland Chapter of the Sierra Club 

 

 

  _____  

From: apwg-bounces at lists.plantconservation.org
[mailto:apwg-bounces at lists.plantconservation.org] On Behalf Of Gena Fleming
Sent: Friday, February 01, 2008 12:08 PM
To: Bob Beyfuss; apwg at lists.plantconservation.org
Subject: Re: [APWG] NEWS: Conservation Strategies Must Shift with
GlobalEnvironmental Change

 

Amen to this.  Worrying about invasive plants distracts us from more central
issues.

The central issue I am most concerned about is not the introduction of
plants from other geographical areas, but the deconstruction and invasion of
genomes by foreign DNA (genetic modification).  Transgressing  sacred
boundaries of natural kingdoms is going to create a lot more problems than
Chinese plants in Louisiana.



 

On 01/02/2008, Bob Beyfuss <rlb14 at cornell.edu> wrote: 

This is the best article I have ever seen cited on this list serve. People
need to wake up the the fact that virtually every ecosystem on this planet
is now dramatically different than it was even 50 years ago due to human
activity on a global scale.  Efforts to "restore" ecosystems that have been
altered by irreversible global changes, such as doubling the carbon dioxide
levels in the atmosphere and rising temperatures, are a huge waste of money
and resources. Invasive plants are just one of the many symptoms of these
changes yet we declare "war" on alien, exotic, species that "menace" us as
though killing off these plants will somehow solve the problem.

At 10:06 AM 2/1/2008, Olivia Kwong wrote:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080131101747.htm

Conservation Strategies Must Shift With Global Environmental Change,
Ecologists Urge

ScienceDaily (Jan. 31, 2008) . Traditional ecosystems in which communities
of plants and animals have co-evolved and are interdependent are
increasingly rare, due to human-induced ecosystem changes. As a result,
historical assessments of ecosystem health are often inaccurate.
Scientists are now suggesting that efforts should focus less on restoring
ecosystems to their original state and more on sustaining new, healthy
ecosystems that are resilient to further environmental change. Accepting
some permanent changes may increase health of ecosystems.

See the link above for the full article text.




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