BEVENT, Wis. (WSAU) — Volunteers spent part of Saturday wading in the Plover River, looking for things that don’t belong there. The volunteers were working with the Golden Sands Resource Conservation and Development Council as part of a statewide annual Bridge Snapshot Day. The volunteers generally work at a bridge or public access site searching for invasive species.
Chris Hamerla organized the local group, which learned how to identify several invasive species, and then checked an area of the river south of Bevent.
Hamerla says the volunteers learned how to search. “The point was to get people out there, not only to look for aquatic invasive species, but a lot times, for people to become more familiar about what to look for and how to look for them.”
Hamerla says the good news is they didn’t have any surprises. “We didn’t find any new invasive species. The Plover River is known to have Rusty Crayfish and Banded Mystery Snails. The volunteers did find those, so it was good. They learned enough that they did find those species. Other than that, they were just happy to learn how to identify, get on the water, and now they’re excited to continue doing that when they go out and recreate, or get other people involved.”
The Golden Sands Resource Conservation & Development Council works closely with the Department of Natural Resources to educate people about invasive species to help prevent spreading harmful plants, animals, and aquatic creatures. Hamerla says paying attention to what’s around you is important for finding invasive species. “The biggest thing I tell people, if you’re out in the water or you’re in the woods, or anytime you’re out recreating or doing things, if you see something that makes you stop and say, ‘what’s that?,’ that’s a good indicator that you should go and take a look and possibly collect a sample and call someone like myself or the DNR and just find out what it is.”
Hamerla says invasive species can upset the ecosystem both in water and on land. He says one example that causes problems for native plants, birds, and animals is Purple Loosestrife. Hamerla says it’s commonly seen in the ditches of roadways between Stevens Point and Wausau, and also around Lake Wausau. “Purple Loosestrife is a good example of when it gets into, especially wetland, where you might have a lot of native plants that your deer and muskrats and birds and other animals depend on, Purple Loosestrife can take that area over and the food and habitat that was lost because of that plant coming in can really harm both animals and birds.”
Anyone that wants more information about identifying invasive species can check out their website at their website or the DNR’s website.
(Listen to our interview with Chris Hamerla on our website, here.)
