West Virginia’s annual book festival celebrating national and regional authors will come to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center this October.
When we talk about invasive species in West Virginia, we’re talking about everything from feral cats and hogs to gypsy moths to Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, or VHS (a highly contagious fish pathogen). And when we talk about managing these, we’re talking about practices that effect everyone.
Invasive Species: “alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health,” according to Presidentiall Executive Order 13112 and the 2014 draft-West Virginia Invasive Species Strategic Plan.
Some examples of these species that are found in West Virginia:
Terrestrial Animals:
Feral Cats – One of the top 100 worst invasive species globally, according to Global Invasive Species Database. Kill 1 billion U.S. birds/year.
Feral Hogs – present in small numbers.
Birds: (European starling, European sparrow, Cowbirds) – pose significant threat to songbird populations.
Terrestrial Plants:
Multiflora rose – ornamental
Japanese knotweed
Tree-of-heaven
Autumn Olive
Kudzu – introduced for restorative purposes
Japanese Stiltgrass – introduced accidentally
Garlic Mustard – Introduced food
Insects:
Gypsy Moth – introduced in Massachusetts in 1869 for silk production
Emerald Ash Borer – killed between 50 and 100 million trees in the U.S. since 2002, and threatens all 7.5 billion ash trees on the continent.
Hemlock Woolly Adelgid – The loss of hemlocks dramatically changes forest composition, decreases breeding habitat for birds, and exposes high elevation cold water trout streams to increased sunlight and sedimentation
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug – an agricultural pest feeds on at least 170 kinds of ornamental and horticultural crops
Pathogens:
Chestnut Blight – virtually eliminated a dominant tree species throughout its range by 1940
White-nose Syndrome – killed over 5.7 million bats in over 20 states in eastern North America
Viral hemorrhagic septicemia – VHS is a highly contagious fish pathogen that was discovered in the Great Lakes in 2002.
Aquatic Species:
Hydrilla – thick-growing, interferes with recreational activities
Yellow Iris – disrupts delicate wetlands
Didymo – single-celled algae that smothers brook trout breeding sites and deprives eggs of oxygen
Zebra Mussels – found in Monongahela, Kanawha, Ohio, and Little Kanawha rivers
Rusty Crayfish – out-competes native species and reduces biodiversity
Silver Carp – leaps out of water and injures boaters.
This week the U.S. Department of Education is launching a multimillion-dollar program to help boost the completion of FAFSA nationwide. We’ll also learn more about the state’s largest methamphetamine seizure in history. And we’ll hear about a rupture in the Mountain Valley Pipeline during a pressure test.
Winners of the 2023 Virginias Associated Press Broadcasters Awards were announced March 23 at the Awards Luncheon and Annual Membership Meeting at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. WVPB brought home five first place awards and seven second place awards in eight different categories.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s News Department has secured 11 nominations in eight categories in the 2023 Virginias Associated Press Broadcasters annual awards competition. This competition includes the best radio and television stations in both West Virginia and Virginia.