USGS News Release: USGS-NASA Technology Helps Fight Invasive Species

[Heather Friesen <hfriesen@xxxxxxxx>]

U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Geological Survey

News Release

February 15, 2006

Contacts:
Michele Banowetz, 970-226-930, Michele_banowetz@xxxxxxxx
Tom Stohlgren, 970-491-1980, Tom_stohlgren@xxxxxxxx


USGS-NASA Technology Helps Fight
Invasive Species

Products based on NASA Earth observations
and a new Internet-based decision tool are providing information to help
land and water managers combat tamarisk (saltcedar), an invasive plant
species impacting precious water supplies in the western U.S. 

This decision tool, called the Invasive
Species Forecasting System (ISFS), is being used at the U.S. Geological
Survey National Institute of Invasive Species Science in Fort Collins,
Colo. The ISFS is the result of combining USGS science expertise with NASA
expertise in Earth observations, software engineering, and high-performance
computing expertise. 

“The ISFS combines NASA satellite data
with tens of thousands of field sampling measurements, which are then used
to analyze past and present distributions of non-native plants and predict
their future growth patterns,” said Tom Stohlgren, National Institute
director. Land managers and others can use the ISFS to generate color-coded
maps to help predict and manage the spread of troublesome invasive species.

“Integrating innovative Earth observation
technology enables the USGS to significantly enhance its ability to support
invasive species management,” said Ed Sheffner, program manager for invasive
species in the Applied Science Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
“The enhancements in the ISFS result from the use of NASA observations,
model output, and systems engineering.”

One application of the ISFS, a habitat
suitability map for saltcedar in the continental United States, is described
in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.

The ISFS was successfully tested when
the pink-flowered saltcedar bloomed last summer in Colorado. The U.S. Department
of Agriculture recently identified saltcedar as one of the most harmful
invasive species in the U.S. because the plant’s long roots tap into underground
aquifers. Its groundwater-absorbing qualities may be adding to the severity
of the drought in the western U.S. Saltcedar also increases the salt concentration
of the soil and degrades habitats for native species along river systems.

Saltcedar is a large shrub to small
tree native to Africa and Eurasia. It was introduced to the western U.S.
in the early 1800s as ornamental vegetation and for wind and erosion control.
Saltcedar has since spread and can be found in the West from Minnesota
to California and from Mexico to Canada. 

The ISFS uses observations and products
from NASA’s Terra, Aqua, and Earth Observing-1 satellites and the USGS-operated
Landsat satellites, together with field data from government and non-government
contributors. The satellites observe and measure sunlight reflected by
plants and their environments. The satellites “lock in” on unique aspects
of the reflected light to determine saltcedar’s current locations and
habitats vulnerable to invasion.

During the plant’s blooming season,
ISFS-generated maps predicting saltcedar locations matched observations
of it in the field. These predictive maps are an important new tool for
land managers involved with saltcedar-related control and restoration efforts.


“Satellite data coupled with computer
modeling helps us understand where saltcedar is likely to be growing, even
in remote locations that field researchers cannot easily reach,” said
John Schnase, principal investigator of the ISFS project at NASA’s Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

The ISFS uses invasive species occurrence
and abundance data from the Global Organism Detection and Monitoring System
developed by the USGS Fort Collins Science Center and Colorado State University.
This monitoring system is an on-line database that allows people to report
sightings of saltcedar or other invasive species to USGS scientists, who
then confirm the observations and incorporate the new data into ISFS map
products.

The USGS is using the ISFS to predict
the distribution of other invasive species such as cheatgrass, Canadian
star thistle, and certain aquatic species.

NASA and the USGS (through the Department
of the Interior) are members of the National Invasive Species Council,
an interdepartmental council with 13 cabinet-level member organizations.
Formed by Executive Order in 1999, the NISC facilitates coordination and
provides leadership for federal agencies working on invasive species issues.

For more information, visit:

U.S. Geological Survey, Biological Resources,
Invasives Species Program
http://biology.usgs.gov/invasive/ 

USGS National Institute of Invasive
Species Science
http://www.niiss.org 

USGS Fort Collins Science Center, Invasive
Species Science Branch
http://www.fort.usgs.gov/research/100/100.asp


Invasive Species Forecasting System
(NASA)
http://invasivespecies.gsfc.nasa.gov/
 
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