Department of Conservation and Recreation
Conserve. Protect. Enjoy.
Department of Conservation and Recreation
Media inquiries: Please contact Dave Neudeck, dave.neudeck@dcr.virginia.gov, 804-786-5053.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: August 05, 2009
Contact:
Mapping of invasive plants by helicopter to begin
The Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation is conducting
a mapping project to locate and document Phragmites, an invasive
wetland plant, around Back Bay and along the Chesapeake Bay shore from
Smith Point to New Point Comfort. A small helicopter, trained observers
and a geographic positioning system (GPS) device will map areas as
small as one-eighth of an acre.
?We?re hoping to
complete the project this year,? said DCR project manager Rick Myers.
?Once all the stands in an area are mapped, strategic approaches to
control this problem plant can be developed.?
The non-native variety of Phragmites is a tall, perennial grass that
takes over native plants and alters wildlife habitat by forming dense
single-species stands.
To map Phragmites, the helicopter flies low to the ground to obtain the
plant?s accurate location. Vegetation, wildlife and landowners will not
be disturbed any more than is necessary. The project will continue
throughout the summer and early fall.
?We make all of the mapped Phragmites location data available to the
general public,? said Myers. ?DCR now has a web-based Phragmites
Mapping Application that provides landowners a means to assess
Phragmites invasions on their own land in order to make plans for its
control.?
For more information on Phragmites in Virginia and to explore the
mapping application, visit the DCR website at
www.dcr.virginia.gov/natural-heritage/invspmnginv or contact DCR
Stewardship Biologist Kevin Heffernan at (804) 786-9112. Phragmites
information collected on the Rappahannock River in 2007 and the Eastern
Shore in 2008 is now available in the mapping application. Back Bay and
Chesapeake Bay shoreline data collected this summer should be available
by winter of 2009-2010. Funding for this project was provided by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under a cooperative agreement with DCR.
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