Fairbanks conference to highlight invasive species

October 31, 2013

Debbie Carter
907-474-5406
10/30/2013
The Alaska Invasive Species Conference Nov. 5–7 in Fairbanks will highlight invasive species management in the Interior and the Yukon and the effects of climate change on plant and animal invasions.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service will host the conference at the Fairbanks Princess Riverside Lodge. The conference is geared to scientists, agency representatives and individuals concerned about the spread of invasive species.

Jason Fridley, a biologist from Syracuse University who specializes in plant ecology and invasive species, will be the featured speaker. He will also present a free public lecture at 7 p.m. Nov. 5 in the Murie Building auditorium on the UAF campus. The lecture will cover global patterns of species invasions and Charles Darwin’s perspective on the issue.

Presentations will cover a hot topic in Fairbanks: management of Elodea, an invasive aquatic plant that clogs waterways and has been discovered in the Chena Slough. Another session concerns sweet clover and its potential effect on blueberry pollination. Other topics will include early detection, inventory and mapping technology, bird vetch control, invasive pike on the Kenai and monitoring for invasive species on marine debris.

The agenda and registration information are linked from www.alaskainvasives.org. The conference was organized by the Alaska Committee for Noxious and Invasive Plant Management and the Alaska Invasive Species Working Group, informal groups composed of agencies and organizations statewide.

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation will offer continuing education credits to certified pesticide applicators who attend the conference.

ON THE WEB: www.alaskainvasives.org

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS: Gino Graziano, Extension invasive plants instructor, at 907-786-6315, gagraziano@alaska.edu

DC/10-31-13/102-14