Water ChestnutsWater chestnuts create an impenetrable mat of growth, which ultimately makes the river inaccessible to boating and fishing. When these plants die off in the fall, they sink and decay, which then depletes oxygen that fish need to survive. This plant causes ecological hardship to native plant and animal life in these areas. The water chestnuts has an annual reproductive rate. Each which makes the fight against them laborious. Large infestations require the use of mechanical harvesters, but these are only usually used before the fruit has ripened. The water chestnuts are particularly in the Hudson, Conneticut, and Potomac Rivers, and also in Lake Champlain.
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Purple Loosestrife
Purple loosestrife are invasive plants that are taking over wet and dry lands.These plants are taking over the ecosystem and native vegetation, they are also interfering with the natural food chain, and also speeding up the wetland conversion to the field.
The purple loosestrife has an enemy. It is a species of beetles from Europe that has been an effective enemy against the loosestrife. These beetles are called Galerucella. These beetles are used to control the purple loosestrife infestation. In 2008 the NRWA started working on a project with these Galerucella beetles. On 12 different sites the NRWA has been raising the beetles and monortoring their progress twice a year to see the progress of the beetles. The 12 sites that the beetles have been used at were in Ashburnham, Ayer, Groton, Leominster, Lunenburg and Pepperell. This project was founded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, also with local donations. |
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Longhorned beetle
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