MARQUETTE – If species like the emerald ash borer, garlic mustard and Eurasian watermilfoil can invade landscapes, perhaps they should invade your thoughts as well.

Residents seeking information and insight on Michigan’s invasive species are invited to visit the state’s new Michigan Invasive Species website at www.michigan.gov/invasives for help.

The site is a collaborative effort among Michigan’s three “Quality of Life” agencies: the Michigan departments of Natural Resources, Environmental Quality and Agriculture and Rural Development, each of which oversees different aspects of invasive species management.

“Preventing invasive species is everyone’s responsibility,” said Joanne Foreman, invasive species communications coordinator for the Quality of Life departments, in a news release. “Human activity is the primary means by which invasive species are moved from place to place.”

The new website, she said, offers simple steps people can take, like removing seeds and mud from shoes, gear and pets to make sure the invasive “hitchhikers” don’t travel with people.

The website can complement management efforts already underway.

The biggest campaign against invasive species in the Upper Peninsula, according to Foreman, has been launched against invasive phragmites. a plant that can grow up to 13 feet fall.

Several Cooperative Invasive Species Management Areas are working together to manage this plant along the north shore of Lake Michigan, with the largest areas in Delta and Menominee counties; locations along Lake Huron; a small location on Lake Superior; and inland around wetlands.

Another threat, she noted, is oak wilt, which is prevalent in the northern Lower Peninsula and parts of the Upper Peninsula.

The Dickinson Conservation District is working with state and federal land managers to address key infestations and spread the word about prevention of this disease, which kills infected red oaks.

Some CISMAs are managing garlic mustard, Japanese and giant knotweeds, spotted knapweed and butterbur, to name a few of the terrestrial plants, Foreman said.

“On the aquatic side, European frog-bit is an emerging issue in the St. Marys River and associated coastal wetlands,” Foreman said.

Darcy Rutkowski, executive director with the Marquette-based Upper Peninsula Resource Conservation and Development Council, said the group worked with partners to treat 750 acres of non-native phragmites last year.

Preventing further infestations in the Lake Superior watershed is a high priority for partners, she said, and more than 2,500 landowners have been contacted and educated about the negative impacts of phragmites. More than 1,000 have been directly engaged in the treatment program.

Why is public participation so important in the battle against invasives? According to the new website, when invasives take hold, they change native ecosystems and can be almost impossible to eradicate. Since removing them is expensive and time-consuming, prevention is the key.

Through the website, users can identify invasive species by searching photographs and descriptions of those known to be in Michigan as well as those threatening to enter the state.

Do you know what an invasive tree species, the Tree of Heaven, looks like? It has compound leaves and flat, twisted, winged seeds, but maybe its odor will tip you off; its flowers and leaves smell like rotten peanut butter.

A quagga mussel is fan-shaped while a zebra mussel is more rounded and can sit flat on its side, unlike the quagga. Both, however, are considered invasive.

Want to know the difference between an ide, a rudd and a tench?

You can learn what three invasive fishes look like by visiting the

website.

Even zooplankton made the site. Crustaceans called tiny water fleas feed on other zooplankton, decreasing the food supply for native fish. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, water fleas also get caught in fishing lines and wreck fishing gear.

Residents are encouraged to report sightings of any of these identified species to help local and state management efforts.

The website educates users on state and federal laws designed to stop the spread of invasive species, such as the Michigan requirement to remove all plant material from boats and trailers before entering a body of water and to drain live wells and bilges when leaving.

A catalog of resources for classrooms and residents also is available on the website, which includes posters, brochures, videos and guidebooks available for download.

Christie Bleck can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250.