Wiki pages on rhino beetle and rhino beetle virus
17 June, 2011 - 07:21 — aubreymooreKUAM News: Bed bugs discovered on Guam
Posted: Jun 07, 2011 4:52 PMUpdated: Jun 07, 2011 7:11 PM
Guam - It's been a major problem in large cities like New York and Cincinnati in the U.S. mainland, but now it seems the pesky problem has made its way to Guam. Some visitors to the island might have some locals losing sleep.
KUAM Article: Dr. Reddy awarded a grant from USDA APHIS to introduce predatory mites on Guam
Posted: May 31, 2011 3:11 PMUpdated: May 31, 2011 3:11 PM Guam - A Western Pacific Tropical Research Center scientist was awarded a $25,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services to introduce predatory mites to control plant-feeding mites on Guam.UOG researcher gets grant to study mites
Symposium June 9, 2011 6-8pm
The University of Guam's Cooperative Extension Service will be hosting a symposium to help residents and famers of Guam. The symposium will cover government services available to famers, a press release from the university stated. The symposium takes place 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. June 9 at the Inarajan Mayor's Office. UPDATE: Government services available to farmers
Guampdn article: Bill to establish Invasive species task force signed into Law
Guampdn Article:
2 bills passed will bring funds to GovGuam
Gov. Eddie Calvo yesterday signed two new laws, which will help bring more money to the government of Guam.
During a bill signing ceremony at Adelup yesterday, Calvo signed Bill 111 and Bill 115 into law.
The new laws provide the administration with "new tools to collect revenues," according to Sen. Chris Duenas, the primary author of both bills. No public law numbers were assigned to the bills as of 5 p.m. yesterday.
insect-scanner macro for ImageJ
The insect_scanner macro extracts images of organisms from scans of sticky traps, pan trap samples, Berlese funnel samples, etc. using ImageJ's particle analysis tools. Morphometric and color features for each particle (organism) are stored in an SQLite database for further analysis.
Replacing Extinct Birds with Snake-tolerant Aliens to Save Guam's Native Limestone Forest
24 April, 2011 - 08:39 — aubreymooreGuam's native limestone forests may be dying because an introduced predator, the brown treesnake, has killed the island's native birds [1]. These birds provided ecosystem services such as seed dispersal, pollination, and insectivory. Without these vital services, some species of native plants may not survive, leading to further cascading ecosystem collapse.
The Ecology of Bird Loss Project is currently studying this problem. However, there has been very little talk of restoring the lost ecosystem services provided by extinct birds by introducing alien species which are snake-tolerant. While "assisted migration" of alien plants (crops, ornamentals, etc.) and insects for biocontrol of invasive species is common, there seems to be a strict taboo in place which prohibits purposeful introduction of alien vertebrates.
Recent articles indicate that introduction of alien birds which evolved with vertebrate predators may help to restore Guam's limestone forest ecosystem [2], [3]. The Japanese white-eye, Zosterops japonicus, may be a likely candidate to replace the extinct Guam bridled white-eye, Zosterops conspicillatus conspicillatus. This omnivorous song bird is a native of most of southeast Asia. It was introduced Hawaii in 1929 as a means of insect control, and has become the most common terrestrial bird in the state. The Japanese white-eye has alsp been introduced into the Bonin Islands which are just to the north of Micronesia. Recent research indicates that this bird provides ecosystem services previosly provided by native birds [4].
References
- . 1994. And no birds sing : the story of an ecological disaster in a tropical paradise. :283p.,[8]p.ofplates:.
- . 2010. On the use of taxon substitutes in rewilding projects on islands. Islands and Evolution. :111-146.
- . 2010. Conservation and restoration of plant-animal mutualisms on oceanic islands. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics. 12:131–143.
- . 2009. Re-established mutualism in a seed-dispersal system consisting of native and introduced birds and plants on the Bonin Islands, Japan. Ecological Research. 24:741-748.
