You won't want to miss Exotic Pet Amnesty 'Behind-the-Scenes' and air potato biocontrol update

Hi all,

Again so soon? Yes, here are 2 things I know you'll want to know:

1) The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is partnering with Everglades Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area (ECISMA) to host the first ever Exotic Pet Amnesty Day in Broward County.

What: First Exotic Pet Amnesty Day in Broward County

Where: Tree Tops Park (3900 Southwest 100th Avenue Davie, FL 33328)

When: Saturday, October 20th, 2012 from 10 AM to 4 PM


We would like to take this opportunity to invite anyone who might be interested in planning or hosting an Exotic Pet Amnesty Day in their county to attend this event. This is a great opportunity to see what an Exotic Pet Amnesty Day Event should look like and get an idea about what needs to be taken into consideration if you intend to plan one.

For those that are interested, we can send you a copy of the Amnesty Playbook ahead of time so you can read through it before attending. On the day of the event you are welcome to tour the exhibitors, get a feel for the layout, and have a behind the scenes tour of the surrender/adoption process.

For more information or to RSVP please contact Liz Barraco at Liz.Barraco@MyFWC.com<mailto:Liz.Barraco@MyFWC.com>. More information about the Exotic Pet Amnesty Program can be found online at MyFWC.com/Nonnatives.

Liz Barraco
Amnesty Adoption Coordinator
Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission
Office: (561) 235-4811 *Please note new office number
Hotline: 1-888-Ive-Got1
Fax: (561) 391-6619

2) Exchange below updating about status and how you could participate in air potato biocontrol, thanks to Charles Cook:

Valuable info, Jack. Looks like the air potato bio-control start-up program is limited to northern counties for now, but certainly our central Florida region would be interested. FNAI keeps a database of air potato infestation and would likely be helpful in a coordinated outreach. I wonder if the native Florida yam will be evaluated?
CISMA hopefully will help foster this remedy locally if it turns out to be viable. Will look forward to additional information and initiatives that may interest us.
Thanks for passing this to us.
Charlie


From: Jordan, Jack D.
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 4:13 PM
To: Cook, Charles
Subject: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

FYI

Jack

From: Crosby, Scott [mailto:Scott.Crosby@freshfromflorida.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 12:13 PM
Subject: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

FYI...
Scott Crosby
Forestry Supervisor II
Florida Forest Service
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

Office: (386) 329-2555
Scott.Crosby@freshfromflorida.com

www.FreshFromFlorida.com
www.FloridaForestService.com

Please note that Florida has a broad public records law (Chapter 119, Florida Statutes). Most written communications to or from state employees are public records obtainable by the public upon request. Emails sent to me at this e-mail address may be considered public and will only be withheld from disclosure if deemed confidential pursuant to the laws of the State of Florida.


From: Rohrig, Eric
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 11:56 AM
To: Crosby, Scott
Cc: Pedersen, Charlie
Subject: RE: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Hi Scott,
Me and Ken Hibbard (DPI-Ft. Pierce) will be responsible for rearing and distributing the beetles throughout all of North Florida. We would like to set up at least one, hopefully several, "beetle reservoir" sites in each county. The site would be a large infestation (preferably 1 acre or larger, bigger the better) where the vines do not receive any control (mechanical/herbicide). We will at first focus releases in those sites and let the population build. We can then let the beetles spread on their own as well as send additional beetles to other sites in the county for release. We are currently releasing beetles in a very large (10 acre) site in Gainesville and a similar site in Marion County.
It is getting late in the year to release beetles in your area but we will happily do it this spring when the vines first emerge. We are setting up a database of infestations so we know where the vine is, where to release beetles and can do post release surveys. If you are interested in participating I could send you a form where you, and anyone else you want to share with, can fill out information about each infestation site. Filling out the form/data would only take about 5-10 minutes per site. It requires getting GPS coordinates of each site, recording the approximate size, taking pictures and rating the % of the area that is covered by the vine.
Or, if you can line up some sites I would be happy to drive over and collect the data myself so that we are ready to go in the spring when the vines first emerge. The adult beetles like to lay eggs on the new growth so it will be best to hit them as soon as the vines start.
Thanks for contacting me and feel free to call if you like, Eric


Eric Rohrig, Ph.D.
Biological Scientist
Methods Development & Biological Control Division of Plant Industry Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

(352) 395-4744
Eric.Rohrig@freshfromflorida.com

1911 SW 34th Street
Gainesville, FL 32608

www.FreshFromFlorida.com

Please note that Florida has a broad public records law (Chapter 119, Florida Statutes). Most written communications to or from state employees are public records obtainable by the public upon request. Emails sent to me at this email address may be considered public and will only be withheld from disclosure if deemed confidential pursuant to the laws of the State of Florida.

From: Crosby, Scott
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 11:28 AM
To: Rohrig, Eric
Cc: Pedersen, Charlie
Subject: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Eric,
I thought you might want to be in on the loop on my request (see e-mail below). I'm guessing you're part of the DPI initiative with the beetle release and research sites? I got your e-mail address from Anne Barkdoll.
Scott Crosby
Forestry Supervisor II
Florida Forest Service
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

Office: (386) 329-2555
Scott.Crosby@freshfromflorida.com

www.FreshFromFlorida.com
www.FloridaForestService.com

Please note that Florida has a broad public records law (Chapter 119, Florida Statutes). Most written communications to or from state employees are public records obtainable by the public upon request. Emails sent to me at this e-mail address may be considered public and will only be withheld from disclosure if deemed confidential pursuant to the laws of the State of Florida.


From: Crosby, Scott
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 10:48 AM
To: 'Center, Ted'
Cc: Lake, Ellen - ARS; Smith, Melissa - ARS; Pedersen, Charlie
Subject: RE: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Hi Ted,
I'm in Putnam County. One of the areas I'd be interested in setting up a research site is on Welaka State Forest. There is an area of air potato on this forest that's fairly small (scattered clumps). The last time it was treated (about a year ago) we used a sprayer that has fairly decent pressure, but the vine has grown into some trees, and we couldn't spray high enough in the trees to effectively treat all of it. I'm cc'ing our district biologist, Charlie Pedersen, as he may have some interest in setting up additional research sites on some of our other forests in our district (Putnam, Levy, Gilchrist, Alachua and Marion counties).

Thanks,
Scott

From: Center, Ted [mailto:Ted.Center@ARS.USDA.GOV]
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 10:20 AM
To: Crosby, Scott
Cc: Lake, Ellen - ARS; Smith, Melissa - ARS
Subject: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Hi Scott,
Beetles are available on a very limited basis. Right now, our priority is to establish research sites and we will be looking for appropriate locations. Where are you located? Would we be able to establish long-term plots there?
It may be futile to try to release this late in the year since the vines die back in the fall. The best strategy may be to wait until they begin sprouting up in the spring. Also, our supply of beetles will be greater next year. We are working with FDACS at DPI in Gainesville to develop a mass-rearing program to meet the state-wide needs for these beetles.
Best regards,
Ted
Ted D. Center, Research Leader
Invasive Plant Research Laboratory
3225 College Ave.
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33314
954-475-6543
954-476-9169 (fax)
ted.center@ars.usda.gov



From: Burgess, Susan
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 9:06 AM
To: Center, Ted
Cc: Keusch, Sue
Subject: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Good Morning Ted & Sue,
Hope you got some well-deserved rest after last Friday!
Would you respond to this inquiry? Thanks!
Have a good day - talk with you tomorrow (the conference call is still a "go" at 2:00 p.m. correct?) Regards, Sue
From: Crosby, Scott [mailto:Scott.Crosby@freshfromflorida.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 25, 2012 8:41 AM
To: Florida EPPC
Cc: Burgess, Susan
Subject: RE: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

Is this beetle being released on a trial basis, or is it available to land managers who have an extensive air potato infestation?
Scott Crosby
Forestry Supervisor II
Florida Forest Service
Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services

Office: (386) 329-2555
Scott.Crosby@freshfromflorida.com

www.FreshFromFlorida.com
www.FloridaForestService.com

Please note that Florida has a broad public records law (Chapter 119, Florida Statutes). Most written communications to or from state employees are public records obtainable by the public upon request. Emails sent to me at this e-mail address may be considered public and will only be withheld from disclosure if deemed confidential pursuant to the laws of the State of Florida.


From: Florida EPPC [mailto:FLEPPC@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of Brown,Karen P
Sent: Friday, September 21, 2012 12:57 PM
To: FLEPPC@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: FW: Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

From: Burgess, Susan [mailto:Susan.Burgess@ARS.USDA.GOV]
Sent: Friday, September 21, 2012 11:35 AM
Contact: Sue Burgess, (301) 651-2431



USDA Laboratory, Florida Students Release Beetles to Combat Invasive Vine in Florida

DAVIE, Fla., September 21, 2012 - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists teamed with Broward County students today to release beneficial beetles that are proving to be an effective biological control against the air potato vine, an aggressive, invasive exotic plant that is displacing native plant species and disrupting ecological functions throughout Florida. The event at the Long Key Natural Area and Nature Center was hosted by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the chief intramural scientific research agency of USDA.
Scientists from ARS' Invasive Plant Research Laboratory (IPRL) at Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and the students released air potato leaf beetles (Lilioceris cheni) in an area infested by the vine, and visited a nearby beetle establishment site to observe the beneficial impact of the biocontrol program. Sixteen beetles released on March 1, 2012, produced thousands of offspring which have caused nearly complete defoliation of the plants in the release area.
ARS' partners in the battle against the air potato vine included the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which funded the project; the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the Dade County Department of Environmental Resource Management (DERM), the South Florida Water Management District, and Broward County Parks and Recreation.
Today's beetle release resulted from ARS research on environmentally friendly ways to combat air potato vine, with support on the final collections of the beetle in southern China by ARS' Australian Biological Control Laboratory. The vine takes its name from the potato-like aerial formations it produces during late summer. Each of these formations can weigh up to two pounds. The vine has been found in most of the Gulf Coast States, Puerto Rico, and as far north as the Carolinas.
"Air potato vine intermingles with important native plant species, so many traditional approaches used to control weeds, such as use of herbicides, aren't viable options in this case," said Ted Center, research leader at the Fort Lauderdale lab. "Using a biological control agent such as the air potato leaf beetle specifically targets the invasive vine while giving native plants room to grow and become more competitive. Air potato vines die back in the fall and sprout in the spring, but the beetles are able to survive the winter months without food. We think the overwintering beetles will quickly attack new vine sprouts when they appear in the spring."
Center said the laboratory invited the students to participate in the beetle release to stimulate their interest in nature and biology, and to provide them with a deeper understanding of biological control and its benefit to the environment. This activity supports USDA's commitment to the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) educational pipeline to help develop the scientists who will be needed in the future to ensure U.S. food security, innovation and agricultural sustainability for years to come.

The ARS laboratory conducts research into the impact of exotic plants as well as the safety and effectiveness of biological control and other methods used to manage invasive plants. The laboratory also collaborates with the public, land management organizations, other government agencies, and the scientific community on all aspects of exotic plant management.
As USDA's chief scientific research agency, ARS is leading America towards a better future through agricultural research and information. ARS conducts research to develop and transfer solutions to help answer agricultural questions that impact Americans every day. ARS work helps to:
* ensure high-quality, safe food and other agricultural products;
* assess the nutritional needs of Americans;
* sustain a competitive agricultural economy;
* enhance the natural resource base and the environment, and
* provide economic opportunities for rural citizens, communities and society as a whole.