Aquatic Invaders
Welcome to week five—the last week of the Scavenger Hunt!
If you missed last week’s Nature Invaders Weekly Digest, you’ll want to take a look. We discussed different methods for removing invasive species, including when you should consider hiring a professional. As we head into the last week of the Scavenger Hunt, we want to emphasize how important it is to develop a removal strategy for the invasive plants you may have observed on your property in order to keep your yard and garden healthy and beautiful and protect native plant biodiversity and wildlife habitat.
In this week’s Nature Invaders Weekly Digest, we looked at some of the invasive plants invading our ponds, wetlands, rivers and streams.
Like land species, invasive aquatic plants reduce biodiversity and habitat. But they have other impacts as well. They can block irrigation canals, interfere with recreational activities and create conditions that support disease vectors, like mosquitoes, that can threaten human health.
Watch for water hyacinth, yellow iris, yellow floating heart, water soldier and phragmites. Although these plants can be aesthetically pleasing, it’s important we take action to remove them when you find them.
Even if you don’t have a water feature on your property, you can still spread aquatic invasive plants through activities like boating. Always clean watercraft and gear before moving from one area to another.
Weekly Observation
We've noticed one scavenger hunt participant has found purple loosestrife on their property. Purple loosestrife is a wetland invasive that can also be found in roadside ditches, shorelines and wet areas. They're hard to miss: their deep pink flowers stand out on long stems that can grow over a metre and up to two metres tall. Removal strategies have been in place in North America since the 1980s, but it has still managed to spread rapidly into Ontario from the United States. You can learn more about purple loosestrife and possible removal strategies in Ontario's Invasive Plants Council's best management practices guide.
Weekly Challenge
If you have a water feature, like a stream, pond or wetland, on your property, observe whether you have any invasive species and upload them to the Scavenger Hunt. If you don’t own a water feature, see if you can spot invasive species in or around your community. Phragmites is common along roadside ditches and wet areas. Once you know what to look for, you’ll be surprised how often you see it!
Comentários
Adicionar um Comentário