Invasives Ken

Fields tours of restoration projects at Shawnee mission Park

Plant geeks dorking out over a rare Eryngium native plant

The group saw lots of legumes during plot tours of this prairie remnant in NE Kansas

I was honored to be an invited speaker at this year’s Grassland Restoration Network meeting! 🌾 I shared our work on using native inoculants to boost diversity in seed-based restorations—and learned so much from the community of practitioners & researchers. #RestorationEcology #Grasslands

Boat wash on wheels aims to stop invasive species in their tracks in N.S. | CBC News The free, mobile boat-cleaning service offered by the Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council is intended to protect the province's lakes and rivers from non-native plants and organisms that could negati...

Glad to return to protecting Nova Scotia waters from aquatic invasive species.

‘It’s an all-you-can-eat buffet’: striped bass in a Canadian river are gobbling up all the salmon. Is a mass cull the answer? Whether to kill one species to save another has split biologists, anglers and Indigenous communities in the Miramichi

Fight for survival in Miramichi.

A vibrant moment from the Chumash Day Pow Wow and Inter-tribal Gathering at Malibu Bluffs Park, celebrating 24 years of tradition. A participant in traditional attire, adorned with colorful feathers, intricate beadwork, and a bright floral headband, performs a ceremonial ritual surrounded by smoke, reflecting cultural richness and spiritual connection.

Indigenous and local knowledge can shape transformative change.🌏🧪

Many Indigenous Peoples and local communities have views and practices aligned with a just & sustainable world. Their ethics of care and values inspire equitable & inclusive change.

.— @ipbes.net #TransformativeChange Assessment

Restrictions on activities in the woods has shut down our watercraft inspection and decontamination program and other activities.

We fully support the Premier. The drought has resulted in extreme risk of wildfire.

The Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council will resume activities when it is safe.

ICYMI - 🚨 Alien Fish Invade Nova Scotia: They Can Breathe Air and Reproduce Alone! 🐟🌍 - Shane Hewitt and The Nightshift | iHeart <p>Ken Donnelly of the Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council joins Shane Hewitt to discuss the alarming discovery of the pond loach&mdash;an invasive fish capable of surviving out of water and reproduc...

I discussed invasives species in Canada with Shane Hewitt on iHeart Radio.

I will be talking invasive species on CBC’s Information Morning - Cape Breton at 8:15 AM.

A four panel figure showing (a) a biologist wading in a turbid river with a water sample, (b) a real-time or quantitative PCR amplification plot with a positive environmental DNA detection, (c) a biologist searching concrete riprap on a river bank, and (d) two freshwater mussels that have been marked for future monitoring and recapture.

Another example of the power of environmental DNA (eDNA): a positive eDNA detection led to the rediscovery of a freshwater mussel not found live in Illinois for over a century. New student-led, open access paper in Ecology with @markdavis79.bsky.social at doi.org/10.1002/ecy....

Great work!

Impressive!

Status of the South Australian Feral #Deer Eradication programme now in its 3rd year

- 25,777 deer shot in 3 years
- population halved in that time

All for nought however if deer farms keep leaking animals into the environment

#InvasiveSpecies #FeralDeer #Cervids

The surprising power of your nature photos Scott Loarie has a challenge for you: go outside and take a picture of a living thing. He introduces the global community of people building a living atlas of the natural world by sharing their nature...

This Ted Talk about iNaturalist and community science is excellent.

I am looking for a PhD student to start Feb 2026 on an Australia-South African collab project looking at protected area & SES resilience. Fully funded + international applicants welcome. Pls send CV & half-page motivation if interested. Relevant background + degree essential. www.resilient-ways.com

Open Positions Positions and vacancies at the Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate

Would you like to come to work with us here at @Macroecology ? The Center is opening six new positions!

macroecology.ku.dk/people/posit...

And their ecological impacts are much more widespread and diverse than is often communicated. Here, I try to put the record straight. I do so while describing a recent paper of ours that introduces a new categorisation of 19 impacts types that invasive species have across ecological hierarchies.

Die-off of hundreds of snails brings foul smell to Lake Micmac | CBC News When Patricia Mombourquette was getting ready for a swim in Lake Micmac last week, she was greeted by a foul stench and the unsightly presence of hundreds of dead snails that had floated to the surfac...

A mass mortality of invasive Chinese Mystery Snails in Lake Mic-Mac has resulted in a putrid odour, disturbing nearby residents.

Never release aquarium pets into the wild.

The Local Organizing Commitee welcomes behavioral ecologists from across the world and of all career stages to enjoy a five-day meeting rich in top-notch science and ample networking opportunities in Turin (Italy), 20-24 July 2026.

It took EAB less than 30 years to successfully invade Canada. The first infestations in Windsor, Ontario likely established in the late 1990s and we hypothesise that EAB invaded Vancouver prior to 2020. Our finding suggest that other, undetected populations of emerald ash borer may exist in other jurisdictions between those in western North America and the wellestablished populations in eastern North America. The quick identification of initial adult in Vancouver 2023 and subsequent delimitation efforts that we document here shows that the collaborative efforts of Canada’s National Plant Protection Organization (i.e., the CFIA), researchers and municipalities to manage EAB can have positive outcomes in the remaining areas of Canada where the insect has not yet been detected. The reporting of the initial adult by Mr. Short also highlights the role of public involvement in invasive species detection (Price-Jones et al. 2022; Roe et al. 2024). That EAB has been in Vancouver for some time suggests efforts in Canada to mitigate the spread of EAB had low effectiveness (Hope et al. 2021). The obvious success of a population in Vancouver, and the continued existence of a population in Winnipeg, Manitoba and other communities in Canada, also suggests that recent development models (Barker et al. 2023) for EAB may be inadequate for making predictions about the potential range of EAB in Canada.

Our take-home message from this detection is this:
6/6

The trunk of an ash tree with many emerald ash borer galleries

New paper from us describing the detection and delimitation of emerald ash borer in Vancouver, Canada.

www.reabic.net/journals/bir... (first article)

#Bioinvasions

1/6

In 2023, I wrote an article in IAGLR's Lakes Letter bulletin that expressed cautious optimism about our ability to reduce invasion rates in aquatic ecosystems.

Success requires strict enforcement & monitoring of evidence-based policy. Cooperation among stakeholders is crucial.
t.co/St0KNZNd8f

Science in the field special | CBC Radio Every summer, labs and classrooms empty out as scientists head out into the field to get their hands dirty. We catch up with Canadian researchers who share the sights and sounds of what they did this ...

Quirks and Quarks aired a story yesterday on research into biocontrol of invasive phragmites in Ontario. Start listening at 14:50.

This is a super-interesting post on the distinctions within groups of organisms that are non-native, of which some will be invasive. Understanding their complex imteractions and impacts is key to their management #biodiversity 🧪

An informational image about tropical biodiversity. The main text states that “The tropics are home to the highest levels of biodiversity in the world, but have also experienced the greatest loss of intact ecosystems“. The IPBES logo appears in the top right corner. The source is credited as "IPBES Global assessment" at the bottom.

🌴The tropics help to sustain life as we know it, but are under immense pressure. From land-use change to resource extraction, these ecosystems face a variety of challenges.

@ipbes.net  #GlobalAssessment

On #TropicsDay, let’s remember that conserving biodiversity-rich areas is essential.🌎🧪

Beaver activists claim they are 'doing God's work' An underground network illegally releases beavers but farmers say it can lead to trouble.

Covert rewilding
www.bbc.com/news/article...

Indirect reciprocal facilitation promotes species coexistence in plant communities worldwide - Nature Ecology & Evolution The relative importance of facilitative and competitive interactions in long-term community dynamics is debated. Here, the authors show that indirect reciprocal facilitation during recruitment in wood...

Source: Nature
search.app/oi53V

Invasive fish species reported in Nova Scotia for first time, DFO says | CBC News A single egg-bearing Oriental weatherfish, also known as pond loach, was discovered in Morgans Falls last month, according to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

This invasive fish was likely released into the wild by an aquarium enthusiast. If you have a plant or animal you no longer want or can no longer care for, contact your pet store to see if they will take it. Never release it into the wild.

Invasive snail creeps up on Nova Scotia lakes, ponds | CBC News The Chinese mystery snail may look big for an aquatic snail, but it's fairly unassuming. But the invasive species can outcompete other snails and even change the water quality of a pond or lake.

Invasive species in Nova Scotia are getting quite a bit of attention. The Chinese Mystery Snail, was likely released into the wild by people who no longer want them in their aquariums.

If you no longer want an aquarium plant or animal, contact your local pet store for help. Don’t Let it Loose!

Experts issue warning about invasive fish that can survive out of water An invasive species of fish that can live out of the water has been found lurking in Canada, experts warn.

They are also known to carry parasites and pathogens that are harmful to both wildlife and humans, according to the Nova Scotia Invasive Species Council.

The pond loach is a common aquarium species and likely was released into the ecosystem, which is illegal in Canada, officials said.

I have opened a professional account to create some separation from my personal ramblings. Expect postings about invasives species, with an emphasis on Canada and Nova Scotia.