DOVER – Delaware’s Native Species Commission will meet at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 18, in Room 221 at the Kent County Administrative Building, 555 Bay Road, Dover, DE 19901.

The Council will discuss progress on its 2019 priorities, potential legislation banning the sale of certain invasive plants, its annual report to the General Assembly, and other issues. For more information, including the meeting agenda, visit the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar at https://publicmeetings.delaware.gov/Meeting/62230.

The Delaware Native Species Commission was formed by the Delaware General Assembly to reverse the trend of decline and extinction of Delaware’s local plant and animal native species, implement recommendations of the Statewide Ecological Extinction Task Force, and provide expertise and assistance to state and local lawmakers, policy makers, educators, and other stakeholders. The Commission is comprised of 19 members, reflecting a balance of environmental professionals, government, and business stakeholders, with DNREC providing staff support.

For more information, please visit the Delaware Native Species Commission webpage or call DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife at 302-739-9910.

Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

DOVER – Delaware’s Native Species Commission will meet at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 16, in Room 220 at the Kent County Administrative Building, 555 Bay Road, Dover, DE 19901.

The Council will discuss progress on its 2019 priorities, a planned symposium, subcommittee reports, potential legislation regarding invasive plant prohibitions, the Commission’s annual report to the General Assembly, and other issues. For more information, including the meeting agenda, visit the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar at https://publicmeetings.delaware.gov/Meeting/62229.

The Delaware Native Species Commission was formed by the Delaware General Assembly to reverse the trend of decline and extinction of Delaware’s local plant and animal native species, implement recommendations of the Statewide Ecological Extinction Task Force, and provide expertise and assistance to state and local lawmakers, policy makers, educators, and other stakeholders. The Commission is comprised of 19 members, reflecting a balance of environmental professionals, government, and business stakeholders, with DNREC providing staff support.

For more information, please visit the Delaware Native Species Commission webpage, or call DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife at 302-739-9910.

Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

DOVER – The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Wetland Monitoring & Assessment Program announced today the release of Delaware’s first wetland-specific plant identification book – The Delaware Wetland Plant Field Guide. This guide will help landowners, practitioners, and scientists identify wetland plants in the landscape with full-color photos, hand drawings, and easy-to-read descriptions.

Plants are one of three key factors for identifying and delineating wetlands. In order for an area to be considered a wetland, it must have: water at or near the surface for some part of the year, hydrophytic plants, which are plants specially adapted to living in wet conditions, and hydric soils, which are soils that are permanently or seasonally soaked in water.

The guide organizes 134 of the most common wetland plants found in Delaware into two main categories of freshwater and saltwater plants. It also includes a general introduction to plant identification and key characteristics, bloom/fruit timing, flower and fruit descriptions, and where you are likely to find each plant.

The Delaware Wetland Plant Field Guide is viewable online, with a high-resolution file or print copy available upon request by visiting de.gov/dewetlandplantguide.

The Delaware Wetland Plant Field Guide was compiled by the Wetland Monitoring & Assessment Program within DNREC’s Division of Watershed Stewardship, with contributions from several local wetland and plant experts. The program works in Delaware to conserve wetlands for their water quality, wildlife habitat, and flood control benefits. To learn more about the program, please visit de.gov/wmap.

To learn more about wetlands, identifying them or the guide, visit de.gov/wetlandtoolbox or contact Brittany Haywood at Brittany.haywood@delaware.gov or 302-739-9939.

Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

Vol. 48, No. 317

Photos of Delaware Department of Agriculture’s surveillance of Emerald Ash Borer can be found on Flickr.

DOVER — Are you helping invasive pests spread in Delaware or around our country? You may have heard that invasive plant pests and diseases are primarily introduced through commercial trade—that’s true. But once they are here, these destructive plant pests don’t move far on their own; they are mostly spread by us. Through our everyday actions—when we take firewood from home to our campsite, mail a gift of homegrown fruits or plants, or order plants, seeds or fruit online from uncertified or uninspected sources—we can contribute to the unintentional spread of any number of destructive plant pests. So when people wonder if their individual actions really matter—the answer is yes.

On a daily basis, our staff is on the lookout for damaging pests like imported fire ants, the Asian Longhorned Beetle, and Ramorum blight. In 2015, imported fire ants were detected during a routine check during an inspection of tropical nursery stock. Fortunately, they were eradicated and no longer pose a threat. We need your help to keep it that way. That’s why it is important for everyone to learn more about these destructive plant pests, take responsibility, and help us stop the spread of invasive species.

It only takes one person to move something they shouldn’t. While they are a strong flyer, it is most likely the emerald ash borer (EAB) beetle hitchhiked into Delaware. And now all of our urban, suburban and rural ash trees are at risk of attack by this devastating pest. And, the risks from EAB stretch well beyond New Castle County and Delaware borders, today EAB infestations are in 30 States.

Invasive plant pests and diseases are a threat in almost every state. If we allow them to enter and become established, these pests could devastate our neighborhoods and public green spaces, and cause damage to native species of plants, forests, watersheds, lakes, rivers and water delivery systems. As it stands today, damage from invasive plant pests costs our nation about $40 billion annually.

To protect our State, we are asking Delawareans to join us in the battle against invasive plant pest and diseases. If you suspect an invasive pest or disease, contact our Plant Industries section at (302) 698-4500. Get acquainted with the hungry pests that would like to dine in Delaware by visiting www.hungrypests.com. This April—Invasive Plant Pest and Disease Awareness Month—we urge you to help stop the spread of these harmful pests.

###

Media Contact: Stacey Hofmann, 302-698-4542, stacey.hofmann@delaware.gov

Piping plover nesting season concludes with 13 fledglings this year

CAPE HENLOPEN STATE PARK – DNREC’s Divisions of Parks & Recreation and Fish & Wildlife announced today that stretches of ocean beach between Gordons Pond and Herring Point and beachfront along the oceanside of The Point on Cape Henlopen have now reopened following the end of a piping plover nesting season that produced 13 plover fledglings in Delaware. The last Gordons Pond Piping Plover chick recently fledged, allowing fencing erected to prevent disturbances to any beach-nesting birds in the area to be taken down. The beach is now accessible for fall surf-fishing, and in time for the Labor Day holiday weekend.

The bay side of The Point will remain closed until Oct. 1 to give refuge to the many species of migratory birds that pass through Delaware on their way to overwintering grounds to the south, said Anthony Gonzon, Division of Fish & Wildlife biodiversity program manager.

Although the beach-nesting bird breeding season has ended, surveys for the rare plant seabeach amaranth are continuing. Seabeach amaranth is a federally-threatened plant species under the Endangered Species Act. Searches of likely amaranth habitat are conducted in Delaware three times a year: in late July, mid-August and late August/early September.

This year, all of the known amaranth plants are located at The Point, with more than 30 plants observed since surveys began in July. No plants have been found between Gordons Pond and Herring Point, usually the most reliable location for finding them, but many of the plants on The Point have appeared outside of the typical fenced section of the dunes and overwashes, well above the high tide line.

Due to the annual variability of distribution of seabeach amaranth plants, an additional temporary fenced section along the ocean side of The Point has been installed parallel to the ocean and will be removed once these annual plants disperse their seed – likely to occur within three to four weeks. This temporary closure will allow the amaranth plants to complete their life cycle and help to sustain the plant population within Cape Henlopen while still allowing access to The Point by permitted vehicles for surf fishing.

With seabeach amaranth in mind, DNREC has closed dunes and overwashes to any human activity to protect sensitive and rare habitats. DNREC advises that surf-fishing vehicles should avoid parking in the restricted area in front of the temporary fencing, but may drive through on the beach along the ocean side of the fence. In addition, surf-fishermen should be aware that higher tides may be experienced during the next week. The possibility exists that surf fishing vehicles could be stranded when this occurs.

For more information, please contact Paul Faircloth, Cape Henlopen State Park superintendent, at 302-645-8983, or Anthony Gonzon, Division of Fish & Wildlife, at 302-735-3600.

About the piping plover
The piping plover was listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1986, and the Division of Fish & Wildlife is responsible for its protection in Delaware. Under a binding agreement and subsequent species management plan that DNREC made in 1990 with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the federal agency with oversight of this ESA-protected species, piping plover nesting areas at Cape Henlopen State Park are closed annually to the public to protect the shorebirds from disturbance during their nesting season which usually runs from March into September. This includes the Point and smaller areas around Gordons Pond. The closure has been successful, increasing the number of piping plover nesting pairs from a low of two pairs to a high of nine pairs, and must include feeding habitat as well as nesting areas. Piping plovers feed on small invertebrates that inhabit the intertidal zone near their nesting territories. Chicks are not fed by their parents, but rather are led to the shoreline to forage while the adults keep watch for potential threats. Allowing pedestrian traffic in the intertidal zone adjoining nesting areas would disturb the vital link between nesting and foraging habitat and risk adverse stress or mortality to the chicks.

About the seabeach amaranth
The seabeach amaranth is an annual plant the formerly ranged from Massachusetts to South Carolina. Rediscovered in Delaware in 2000 after a 125-year absence, this plant has been found on Delaware’s ocean beaches throughout Cape Henlopen State Park and Delaware Seashore State Park. Federally listed as threatened in 1993 under the Endangered Species Act, seabeach amaranth typically grows in open sand along the base of the primary foredunes or along undisturbed wrack lines high on the beach where seed may become trapped. Each year, plants may reoccur in the same locations or appear in new locations as a result of shifting sands and seed dispersal from varying weather conditions over the fall and winter seasons. As an annual plant, amaranth completes an entire life cycle in a single year’s growing season, flowering in mid to late summer, dispersing seed in late August and early September.

Media Contact: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 46, No. 323