Media contacts:
Bob Pitman, bob_pitman@fws.gov  505/248-6471
Craig Springer, craig_springer@fws.gov  505/248-6867

Technology on the Front Line of Invasive Species

A boater pulls the tiller starboard and throttles down. The boat sashays sideways as the wake settles. And who's there to greet the recreationist?: a biologist working on the front lines of defense, to keep the highly invasive zebra mussel at bay.

As part of the 100th Meridian Initiative, a proverbial line in the sand, boaters in Oklahoma and Kansas might expect starting this spring to be interviewed by biologists gathering data on boater habits. The voluntary information will be used to keep zebra mussel, and other invasive species east of the meridian and out of western waters.

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service invasive species biologist, Bob Pitman, leads the effort.

"Like planning any defense, you have to have good information," said Pitman. "To protect western waters from invasive species, biologists need to know what waters west of the 100th meridian are particularly vulnerable."

To find out, Pitman has enlisted the help of biologists with the state fish and game agencies in Kansas and Oklahoma, as well the Corps of Engineers and U.S. Coast Guard. Armed with small personal computers, commonly called PDA's, biologists can interview boaters willing to participate in the surveys. They'll ask boaters about where they've been boating and where they expect to launch their craft in the future. They'll ask about how boaters clean their craft, and offer tips on keeping zebra mussel off their hulls and moving them to new water.

Given the immediacy of concern for the impact invasive species could have on fishing, duck hunting, boating, and domestic and industrial waterworks, the data collected will be almost instantaneously available.

"Used to be, the information from angler and boater surveys done in the spring and summer weren't looked at until the snow flies," said Pitman. "The PDA changes all that, saving time and money, and making the information useful almost right away."

The data collected via boater surveys will be analyzed by researchers at the University of Texas - Arlington; they will identify waters in the West most vulnerable to future invasions of unwanted zebra mussel. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and partners can then target educational efforts where they will be most effective. In the end, it could save you a lot of money; invasive species cost Americans at least $100 billion each year in damaged industrial equipment and in measures designed to control plants and animals that have already gained a foothold.

To learn more, visit www.100thmeridian.org

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