Friends of Big Creek

Invasive Species
Internet Information Resources

Japanese Knotweed leaf
Japanese Knotweed
(Polygonum cuspidatum)
Invasive Plants of Ohio
General information and factsheets on individual species. From the Division of Natural Areas & Preserves, Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources. Lists Ohio's Top Ten Invasive Plants.
Ohio Perennial and Biennial Weed Guide
From the Ohio Agricultural Research & Development Center. Searchable and browsable by common or scientific name. Gives description, including picture, origin and distribution, toxicity, biology, similar plants and varying names, miscellaneous facts and folklore.
Identifying Noxious Weeds of Ohio
From the Ohio State University Extension Service.
Great Lakes Information Network
- Invasive Species in the Great Lakes Region
- TEACH Great Lakes: Non-native Invasive Species in the Great Lakes
Midwest Invasive Plant Network
Includes the Ohio Invasive Plants Council. The network site provides a pdf or MS Access database of Invasive Plant Educational Materials and points to good sources for Control and Management information.
Weeds Gone Wild: Alien Plant Invaders of Natural Areas
A public education project of the Plant Conservation Alliance Alien Plant Working Group. Provides information about the threat and impact of invasive alien plants to native ecosystems. Illustrated fact sheets for a variety of plants with descriptions, habitat, native range, distribution and management approaches. Includes good background information on the problem of invasive alien plants, plus links to other Internet resources.
INVADERS Database System
This site is designed to help land management and weed regulatory agencies detect and track weed distribution. It's focus is five states in the northwest but includes noxious weed listings for all 48 contiguous states.
Invasive Species: The Nation's Invasive Species Information System
A comprehensive site to facilitate sharing of information among government and other agencies. Plant profiles provides links to Web resources for a variety of threatening plants.
TNC Invasive Species Initiative
From The Nature Conservancy. A good source to consult for developing management plans, strategies and methods. There are also a number of items here that can be downloaded.
Impacts of Introduced Species in the United States
Many non-native plants/animals/pathogens that are brought into the country are quite harmless, but about one in seven becomes an invader! An article from Consequences, a publication of US Global Change Research Information Office.
Harmful Non-Indigenous Species in the United States
1993 Report of the Office of Technology Assessment in pdf format. Take a look at Chapter 1: Summary, Issues, and Options for good statistics and charts.
Non-native invasive plants of the Midwest and Eastern United States
A handy listing from a wildflower seed producer.
Plants Database
U.S. Department of Agriculture site. Contains a special section on Invasive and Noxious plants with reports by state.
NatureServe
An "Online Encyclopedia of Life" from the Association for Biodiversity Information. This database contains "conservation status, taxonomic, and distribution information for over 50,000 plants, animals, and ecological communities in the United States and Canada."
Japanese Knotweed
Naturalist "Wildman" Steve Brill presents excellent illustrations from all stages of the yearly lifecycle of the species, along with recipes in case you want to try this method for control and eradication :)
The Japanese Knotweed Alliance
A UK site.
The Japanese Knotweed Page
Another good source for photos of knotweed at various stages of growth.
Invasive Species Weblog
Keep current or dive into the archives. Also, visit the Invasive Species Store—the place to get your gear.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Invasive Species Program
Web site is currently under reconstruction - see the former version at http://web.archive.org/web/20020602070913/http://invasives.fws.gov/.
Activities to prevent and control invasive plant and animal species that severely impact the lands and waters of the United States, including resources managed within the National Wildlife Refuge System.