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For release: January 23, 2017
See it? Report it!
Washington Launches an Updated Invasive Species Reporting App
OLYMPIA – Who should you tell if you reel in a strange
fish, find a new plant taking over in your yard or local park, spot a strange
insect in your firewood or see a feral pig while recreating in the backcountry?
Figuring that out just got easier with an updated app
from the Washington Invasive Species Council that lets you report unusual
sightings on your smartphone or computer.
Within a few minutes of sighting an invasive species,
a photograph, geographic coordinates and sighting information can be entered
and made available immediately with an automated alert to the council and its
network of experts.
“This streamlined process will enable invasive species
managers in Washington State to more quickly respond to new invasive species sightings,”
said Justin Bush, executive coordinator of the Washington Invasive Species
Council. “When it comes to successfully eradicating invasive species, early
detection and a rapid response is key.”
Invasive species and noxious weeds outcompete native
plants and animals, interfere with commercial harvest and result in millions of
dollars in costs to control and undo damages. Nationally, invasive species cost
more than $137 billion annually through crop damage, fisheries reduction,
forest health impacts and management.
Once experts verify a mobile app report, it becomes
part of the Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System (EDDMapS), from the
University of Georgia’s Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
EDDMapS is a Web-based mapping system that provides real time tracking of
invasive species occurrences, and local and national distribution maps,
available for viewing at eddmaps.org. EDDMapS contains more than 3 million
invasive species occurrence reports made by 35,000 users across North America.
This comprehensive view of invasive species locations helps to guide policy,
research and decisions at local and international levels.
“EDDMapS aggregates data from many sources,
professional and citizen scientists alike, through bulk data uploads, Web
reports and smartphone reports into a database,” said Chuck Bargeron, associate
director for invasive species and information technology at the University of
Georgia Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health.
The technology could be valuable for a regional
initiative to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive mussels in the Pacific
Northwest and western Canada, said Matt Morrison, executive director of the
Pacific NorthWest Economic Region. The organization is working to combat
invasive quagga and zebra mussels. Since the late 1980s, these destructive and
persistent aquatic invasive species have infested waterways across the United
States and often are transported on boat hulls.
“A reporting app that jurisdictions can use to
pinpoint suspected invasive species incursions on a large-scale distribution
map will be a major boon to regional mussel prevention and response efforts,”
Morrison said. “Recent findings of mussel larvae in Montana–less than 75 miles
from the Columbia River watershed–bring home the need for widespread invasive
species monitoring and data-sharing technology.”
“Preventing the introduction of invasive species in
Washington state and the region is everyone’s responsibility,” Bush said. “The
app is another tool to prevent invasive species introductions. You can start
tracking invasive species today by visiting the Google Play Store and Apple
iTunes App Store and searching for WA Invasives.”
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