Mid-Atlantic Invasive Plant Council (MAIPC): MA-EPPC 2009 Conference

Complicating Factors in Invasive Plant Management:
Circumstances Beyond Our Control?
August 11 and 12, 2009 at the University of Pittsburgh in Johnstown, PA

Managing non-native invasives species to mitigate the threat to the world's biological diversity is getting more challenging. Our quality of life depends on the health of our natural resources, but limited funding, human development, introduction of new species and complicates species interactions combine to make the job tough. In this 5th Mid-Atlantic conference, attendees obtained useful background on the issues surrounding this biological problem and more.

Coverage in local Tribune-Democrat newspaper and a story on WTAJ News.

Conference Brochure and Conference Flyer

Day One:

Welcome - Meghan Fellows, President, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Pest Plant Council

Opening Remarks - U.S. Representative John P. Murtha, Pennsylvania Congressman, 12th District

Keynote: Ecological Thresholds, Multiple Stressors, and Timing: Teasing Apart the Complexities Behind Invasive Plant Establishment and Spread - Cynthia Huebner, Ph.D., Research Botanist/Ecologist, USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station

White-tailed Deer as Agents of Change - Kip Adams, Certified Wildlife Biologist, Quality Deer Management Association

Deer and the Effects of Natural Disturbance and Invasive Interactions - John Snitzer, Graduate Research Assistant, Hood College

Beyond Browsing: Overabundant Deer Suppress Unpalatable Natives and Facilitate Invasive Species Success in Forests - Susan Kalisz, Ph.D., Professor of Biology, Department of Biological Science, University of Pittsburgh

Anthropological and Ecological Aspects of Plant Distributions: How Medicinal and Culinary Herbs Become Invasive - Sunshine Brosi, Ph.D.,Department of Biology, Frostburg State University

Addressing Invasive Species as Part of Stream Restoration Projects: Japanese Knotweed and the Princeton Creek Restoration - Robert Siegfried, Restoration Practice Leader, Whitman, Requardt & Associates, LLP

Using the Invasive Species Mapping System for the Mid-Atlantic States - Chuck Bargeron, Information Technology Director, Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health, The University of Georgia

Spatial Approaches to Modeling Dispersion: An Epidemiology Example - Ling Bian, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Geography, University at Buffalo, State University of New York

Invasive Species Landscape Model: Predicting Vulnerability of Areas to Invasiveness - Michael Strager, Ph,D. Assistant Professor, Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Science, West Virginia University

Mitigating the Invasive Risk Potential of Biofuel Crops - Jacob Barney, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Scholar, University of California, Department of Plant Sciences

Dinner and rooftop native pant garden tour at the Johnstown Discovery Center.

Kip Adams talking about Deer

Dinner at the Johnstown Discovery Center

Natural Biodiversity sponsored Roof Garden of the Childrens' Musuem

Day Two:

Mid-Atlantic Exotic Pest Plant Council Business Meeting

Welcome - Gregg Robertson, President, Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association

Remove, Reboot, Reflect: The Three R's of Why Invasive Species Control is Restoration - Mary Travaglini, Potomac Gorge Habitat Restoration Manager, The Nature Conservancy of MD/DC

Track One: Planning and Control Strategies

More than an Inventory - Prioritizing Treatment Sites with Limited Resources - Kevin Heatley, Vice President, Biohabitats Invasive Species Management, Inc.

Hiring a Firm to Control Invasive Species: How to Write an Effective Business Contract - Steve Manning, Owner, Invasive Plant Control

Establishing and Enforcing a "Do-Not-Plant List" Within a Homeowners Association-governed Community - Laura Etchison, CMCA, AMS, On-Site Community Manager, Lorna Patrick, Grounds Committee Member, Villages of Urbana

Central Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team - Michael Van Clef, Ph.D., President, Ecological Solutions, LLC

Using WIMS Mapping Software to Record and Track Treatments - Mary Travaglini and Jamie Weaver, The Nature Conservancy of MD/DC

Wavy Leaf Success Story: Volunteers, Outreach, Results - Marc Imlay, Ph.D., Conservation Biologist, Anacostia Watershed Society

Track Two: Complex Ecological Relationships

Managing Japanese Barberry Infestations Reduces Blacklegged Tick Abundance and Infection Prevalence with Borrelia burgdorferi - Scott C. Williams, Assistant Agricultural Scientist, Department of Forestry and Horticulture, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

BioControl for Tree of Heaven - Donald D. Davis, Ph. D., Professor of Plant Pathology, Pennsylvania State University

An Overview of the National Invasive Species Council and Invasive Species under the Current Administration - Chris Dionigi, Ph.D., Assistant Director for Domestic Policy, Science, and Cooperation, National Invasive Species Council (NISC)

Q: How Can You Tell a Cultivar from a Native Plant? A: Pull Down Their Genes - William E. Young, RLA, PWS, President, Young Environmental, LLC

Track Three: Local Diversity and Invasive Plants

Field Experience: Looking at the Campus' Invasive Plants and Natural Diversity - Bruce Robart, Ph.D., Biology Professor, University of Pittsburgh

Potential for Synergy between White-tailed Deer Herbivory and Invasive Plant Species in Mature Deciduous Forests - William J. McShea, PhD., Wildlife Ecologist and Norm Bourg, Ph.D., Plant Ecologist, Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian Institution, National Zoological Park

Fire Management as a Tool in Invasive Plant Management - David McNaughton, Assistant Wildlife Manager, Fort Indiantown Gap

The Effect of Climate Change on Invasive Plants - Lewis Ziska, Ph.D., Plant Physiologist, Agricultural Research Services, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD