The Authority continued to lead the local battle against purple loosestrife, a European plant that is invading North American wetlands.
Volunteers came out for our annual Losestrife Control Days. They helped to dig out loosestrife plants along Neebing Ave. in the south end of Thunder Bay. Lakehead Conservation is grateful for their efforts.
The big story was the release of loosestrife-eating beetles at two locations. The beetles fed only on loosestrife. They will be an effective weapon against loosestrife because they eat the leaves, thereby slowing growth, and damage the flowers resulting in less seed production. Less seeds is an important step in controlling loosestrife, since each flower stalk can produce 100,000 seeds!
A box of Galerucella beetles was shipped up to Thunder Bay in July, 1997. Conservation
staff relaeased the beetles at two of the worst sites- one on Montreal St. across
from Bombardier and the other on Highway 17 at Birch Beach Road.
The beetles quickly crawled and flew their way to nearby loosestrife plants. When the sites were inspected in the fall, small holes could be seen in the leaves of loosestrife plants immediately around the release site and also on plants across the road. Some flower tops looked dried out and chewed up.
Originally
posted: Jan. 1998
