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Updated May 1 --------------------------------------------------------- NYSDEC confirms presence of didymo in Esopus Creek Aquatic Algae Discovered in Popular Recreational Waterway New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis today announced that didymo, an invasive species, has been confirmed in the Esopus Creek in Ulster County. This is the first known presence of this aquatic algae, also called “rock snot,” in the Esopus and the third confirmed location in New York State. The Esopus is a popular recreational waterway for fishing, kayaking and tubing, and is a drinking water source for New York City. DEC collected samples and confirmed the presence of didymo in the vicinity of several public access sites along a 12-mile stretch of the Esopus from the “Shandaken Portal” (which transfers water to the Esopus from Schoharie Reservoir) to New York City’s Ashokan Reservoir. Didymo Impact Unlike many other aquatic invasive plants, didymo (Didymosph...

Updated 4/23 -------------------------------------------------------- Invasive Species Workshop at ALLEGANY STATE PARK - Thursday May 7th From New York Outdoors Blog Forests, streams, lakes and fields are being degraded or irreparably damaged by alien invasive species. The cost to eliminate or mitigate the effects from these species will be vastly higher the longer we wait. The economic damage suffered by other parts of the country will happen here unless we are vigilant now. Emerald Ash Borer is confirmed just south of Cattaraugus County; Asian Long-Horned beetles have been found in the Long Island Region; Mile-a-Minute Vine and Giant Hogweed are in Cattaraugus County. Learn how to properly identify the invasive species and then what to do in response to help eradicate the problem. This workshop will be covering everything from Rock Snot to Emerald Ash Borer; Mile-a-Minute to Hogweed. The three main topics at the workshop are aquatics, plants and insects. We are unable to provide lunc...

Opinion: After five years, government rules out Asian oyster gamble From HomeTownAnnapolis.com It's now official, or at least as official as it's likely to get. There won't be any shortcut on the winding road that may lead to some restoration of the Chesapeake Bay's embattled oyster population. Federal, Maryland and Virginia officials announced Monday that their plans for restoring the oysters do not include introducing the so-called Asian oysters ( Crassostrea ariakensis ) to bay waters. The Asian oysters grow faster, are hardier, and are supposedly resistant to diseases - MSX and Dermo - that devastated the native oysters ( Crassostrea virginica ), whose population is now languishing at perhaps 1 percent of historic highs. Watermen and seafood processors were excited by the idea of importing ariakensis, and the enthusiasm spread to the administration of Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. Of course, with federal and state money involved, the idea had to be studied. An...

Council to remove Egeria densa from lake in New York Written by Matt Dalen, LewisboroLegend.com With luck, the Three Lakes Council will soon have eradicated an invader to Lake Waccabuc. With no public comments objecting to the plan, and permission from all of the landowners involved, the town Planning Board on Tuesday, March 24 approved the council’s proposal to suck the invasive plant species Egeria densa out of Waccabuc Cove on Lake Waccabuc once the weather warms. The town Planning Board had closed a scheduled public hearing on the plan earlier this month after a short discussion of what the eradication of the plant will entail. The proposal, which is expected to start in May and last two to three weeks, would involve divers taking suction hoses to the lake bottom over an area of about two acres, trying to remove any and all plant material that could re-start the infestation. Egeria is capable of regrowing from a small fragment of its stem, a feature that makes it desirable in the h...