Invaders of Texas: Invasive Species Workshop

Title: Invaders of Texas: Invasive Species Workshop
Location: Texas AgriLife Extension Service 3033 Bear Creek Drive Houston, Texas 77084
Link out: Click here
Description: Guest Speakers:
* Travis Gallo, Program Coordinator, Invaders of Texas
* Jed Aplaca, Horticulturist, City of Houston Parks and Recreation Department

What is “Invaders of Texas”?
The Invaders of Texas Program is an innovative campaign whereby volunteer “citizen scientists” are trained to detect the arrival and dispersal of invasive species in their own local areas. That information is delivered into a statewide mapping database and to those who can do something about it. The premise is simple. The more trained eyes watching for invasive species, the better our chances of lessening or avoiding damage to our native landscape.

Why do we need to do this?
1. Invasive species threaten native plants and native plant communities.
2. After habitat destruction, invasive species are the single largest cause of native plant extinction.
3. The rate at which new, potentially invasive, species are being introduced is increasing.

What will I do after the workshop?
Your completion of the workshop will make you a trained “Citizen Scientist” and a part of the Pulling Together Initiative, a collaborative project between several state and federal agencies, including the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. The purpose of the Pulling Together Initiative is to provide information about identification and management of invasive plants, establish locations for invasive plant demonstration areas, and, through a statewide conference, facilitate information sharing about non-native invasive plants. As a Citizen Scientist, you will be able to recognize many species of invasive plants, determine their location and mode of occurrence, and report this information by entering it into the database maintained at http://www.texasinvasives.org/

Cost: A donation of $5-7 per person for lunch, but it might be free if we get some groups to help subsidize the food. Coffee and beverages also provided.

How do I sign up?
To enroll, send an email to Bruce Handley at bhandley2@comcast.net or call 713.703.7244. Be sure to choose regular or vegetarian lunch.

What Should I Bring?
Bring pens, pencils, notebook paper, a clipboard, a digital camera, and a hand-help GPS device, if you have one.

This workshop has been made possible in part by the Heartwood and Gulf Coast Chapters of the Texas Master Naturalists, and the Houston Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas. Thank you!
Start Time: 09:00 am
Date: 2010-05-15
End Time: 16:00 pm