[APWG] Water Chestnut more info.

[Marc Imlay]

May, 2018, a petition has been submitted to TAG.

 

 

Biological Control

The unfortunate fact is that for large infestations of water chestnut (i.e. those too large to be controlled by hand-pulling) over the long-term mechanical and chemical control measures have proven to be impractical to provide an economically sustainable control of water chestnut. Scientists have now turned to the potential of biocontrol agents to serve as a long-term solution to water chestnut infestations.

A number of potential biological control agents were found in field surveys in the native European and Asian ranges of water chestnut. The most promising biocontrol species appeared to be the leaf beetle Galerucella birmanica. Unfortunately, field observations in China suggested that G. birmanica may also attack native water shield (Brasenia schreberi) in addition to Trapa natans. This host non-specificity could be problematic to the use of the beetle for biocontrol in North America.

Laboratory and field tests initially indicated that out of 19 different plant species in 13 different families, G. birmanica laid eggs and completed development only on species of Trapa and B. schreberi. Adult G. birmanica in the field and lab indicated that the beetles showed a strong preference for T. natans. This preference continued even after the water chestnut was completely defoliated; adults resisted migrating to nearby water shield. While this is very promising news, additional studies on host specificity with additional North American aquatic plants are on-going. [Ding, et. al., 2006]

http://nyis.info/invasive_species/water-chestnut/

 

 <http://nyis.info/> NEW YORK INVASIVE SPECIES INFORMATION

New York State's gateway to science-based invasive species information

 <http://www.seagrant.sunysb.edu/>  <http://cce.cornell.edu/Pages/Default.aspx> 

From: Marc Imlay <ialm at erols.com> 
Sent: Sunday, February 10, 2019 12:01 AM
To: 'INVASIVES at LISTSERV.UMD.EDU' <INVASIVES at LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>; 'maipc at lists.maipc.org' <maipc at lists.maipc.org>; 'rodswalker at gmail.com' <rodswalker at gmail.com>; 'Reardon, Richard C -FS' <rreardon at fs.fed.us>; 'apwg at lists.plantconservation.org' <apwg at lists.plantconservation.org>; donnamfoster at fs.fed.us; 'Michelle Wyman, NCSE' <michelle at ncseglobal.org>; 'chuck woolery' <chuck at igc.org>; 'Matthew.Tancos at ars.usda.gov' <Matthew.Tancos at ars.usda.gov>; 'Steven Manning' <stevemanning at mindspring.com>; 'board at mdflora.org' <board at mdflora.org>; 'antonia.bookbinder at gmail.com' <antonia.bookbinder at gmail.com>; ''Sara Tangren' (stangren at umd.edu)' <stangren at umd.edu>
Subject: Invasive plants and climate change

 

Dear biocontrol colleagues,

 

With the Federal shut downs, which universities should we encourage to do the research on biological controls? Reminder that if the first stage is successful to determine good potential candidate insects or pathogens, the next stage to prove host specificity is more likely to be funded. 

 

Marc Imlay, PhD Conservation biologist, Park Ranger Office, Non-native Invasive Plant Control coordinator. 
(301) 442-5657 cell   <mailto:ialm at erols.com> ialm at erols.com
Natural and Historical Resources Division
The Maryland-National Capital   Park  and Planning Commission

European Water Chestnut
European water chestnut (Trapa natans) is an invasive aquatic plant native to Europe and Asia. It was first observed in the United States in Massachusetts in the late 1800s. Its current distribution is the mid-Atlantic and northeastern U.S., with the most serious problems being reported for the Connecticut River valley, Lake Champlain region, Hudson River, Potomac River and the upper Delaware River (Swearingen et al. 2010). This species can form dense floating mats, and its sharp fruits can cause painful wounds, making control efforts a challenge. The most promising species for biological control is Galerucella birmanica, a leaf beetle (Ding et al. 2006, 2007), and in May, 2018, a petition has been submitted to TAG. 

 

Is Canada going to help again?

 

 

 



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