Insect Bio-controls in the Florida Everglades

Authors: Crees, Logan

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/20/2022
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Using insect biological control agents for invasive weeds is an ever-growing field with new insect species being approved for release every year. In Florida, the vast expanse of the Everglades ecosystem is the setting for many of these insect and plant interactions. From floating water hyacinth to vining old world climbing fern, and impenetrable forests of Melaleuca, biological control insects play an important role in the conservation of Florida’s “River of Grass”. I’ll cover the selection, approval, mass rearing, release, and outcomes of several decades of biological control implementation in the pursuit to help conserve and restore North America’s largest wetland ecosystem from invasive plants.

Technical Abstract: Using insect biological control agents for invasive weeds is an ever-growing field with new insect species being approved for release every year. In Florida, the vast expanse of the Everglades ecosystem is the setting for many of these insect and plant interactions. From floating water hyacinth to vining old world climbing fern, and impenetrable forests of Melaleuca, biological control insects play an important role in the conservation of Florida’s “River of Grass”. I’ll cover the selection, approval, mass rearing, release, and outcomes of several decades of biological control implementation in the pursuit to help conserve and restore North America’s largest wetland ecosystem from invasive plants.