Courtesy of the LSU AgCenter
Invasive apple snail eggs grow a few inches above the water. The Mississippi River Invasive Species Consortium will be a regional hub for research and outreach on detecting, identifying and managing invasive and non-native pest species like the apple snail.
If you think of the Mississippi River as a superhighway that connects Louisiana and the entire Mississippi Valley with global agricultural trade, then the LSU AgCenter’s recent receipt of $1 million in federal funding to combat invasive species makes good sense. The funding, which was secured by U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow of Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District with assistance from members of the state’s congressional delegation, enables the creation of the Mississippi River Invasive Species Consortium—a regional hub for research to identify and manage invasive and non-native pest species along the Mississippi corridor. Housed within the LSU AgCenter, the consortium will unite scientists from land-grant institutions throughout the Mississippi River valley in coordinated efforts to combat the spread of invasive species, such as giant salvinia, feral hogs, apple snails, Mexican rice borers, and Asian carp—species that thrive in Louisiana’s climate and pose economic, environmental, and social challenges to ecosystems and agricultural operations in all the states connected by the river.
[Read this: "A Q&A with Invasive Species Expert, Rodrigo Diaz"]
The AgCenter has an existing commitment to researching invasive species. It already houses a Center of Research Excellence for the Study of Invasive Species. AgCenter leaders anticipate that the Invasive Species Consortium will expand the center’s influence to a regional level that extends from the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes. In a press release published in January, Senior Vice Chancellor of the LSU AgCenter and Dean of the LSU College of Agriculture Matt Lee said, “Invasive species cost Louisiana’s agricultural producers and the state’s economy tens of millions of dollars annually, with a national impact exceeding $120 billion each year. This funding will allow us to coordinate detection, identification, research and best management practices to mitigate these threats and protect our region’s vital agricultural and natural resources.” lsuagcenter.com.
