Tag: Invasive Species

Close-up portrait of a person seated at a desk in an office setting, wearing an orange collared shirt and facing the camera. A shelf with office supplies and a patterned cup is visible in the background, along with a light-colored cinder block wall.

IRREC Faculty Member Secures USDA Farm Bill Grant to Launch International Biological Control Program Targeting Cotton Jassid

by Joe McQueen
June 12, 2026

Nicole Quinn, assistant professor of entomology and nematology and expert in biological control at the UF/IFAS Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC), was awarded a farm bill grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ... READ MORE

Category: Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Research, Wildlife
Tags: Biological Control, Insects, Invasive Species, Pests

Florida Land Steward Update, June 12, 2026

by Chris Demers
June 12, 2026

REPORT YOUR WILD TURKEY SIGHTINGS THIS SUMMER! Participate in the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC’s) Wild Turkey Summer Brood Survey and report your wild turkey sightings from June 1 – August 31. These observations ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Disaster Preparation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest, Forest Health, Hurricane Preparation, Hurricane Recovery, Hurricane Season, Invasive Species, Landowner Assistance, Natural Resources, Online Course, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tree Farm, Wild Turkey, Wildlife

Florida Land Steward Update, June 5, 2026

by Chris Demers
June 5, 2026

2026 USDA FOREST SERVICE LONGLEAF CONE REPORT RELEASED The latest USDA Forest Service Longleaf Pine Cone Report shows a promising outlook for 2026. Based on green cone counts this spring, the predicted regional longleaf cone crop for this ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Disaster Preparation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Florida Wildlife Corridor, Forest Health, Hurricane Preparation, Hurricane Season, Invasive Species, Landowner Assistance, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resources, Online Course, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tree Farm
A spectacled caiman juvenile. UF/IFAS Photo by Jemeema Carrigan

Invasive caiman may pose new challenges for Everglades restoration

by Lourdes Mederos
June 4, 2026

UF researchers pieced together the first comprehensive review of the spectacled caiman, a small invasive crocodile-like reptile. Introduced into South Florida more than 45 years ago, researchers have suspected caimans compete ... READ MORE

Category: Blog Community, Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Research, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Colombia, Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, Crocodilians, EDDMaps, Environmental DNA Tools, Español, Exotic Pet Trade, Guayana, IFAS, Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, Invasive Species, Native Wildlife, News, Research, South Florida, Spectacled Caiman, The Croc Docs, UF IFAS Fort Lauderdale Research And Education Center, UF-IFAS, University Of Florida, Wetland

Florida Land Steward Update, May 29, 2026

by Chris Demers
May 29, 2026

THE RAIN RETURNS! SO DID HURRICANE SEASON. TIME TO PREPARE. A big shoutout to the return of rain! Also great to see some of the burn bans finally lifting. Keep it coming. Maybe we can get some of that much needed growing season burning in soon. Hurricane ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Disaster Preparation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest Health, Hurricane Preparation, Hurricane Recovery, Hurricane Season, Invasive Species, Landowner Assistance, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resources, Online Course, Payment For Ecosystem Services, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tree Farm

Florida Land Steward Update, May 8, 2026

by Chris Demers
May 8, 2026

FLORIDA WILDLIFE CORRIDOR PAYMENT FOR ECOSYSTEM SERVICES PILOT PROGRAM The Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation teamed up with The Balmoral Group to develop a Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) framework using the University of Florida’s ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Drought, Ecosystem Services, Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest Health, Forest Management, Hurricane Preparation, Hurricane Recovery, Invasive Species, Landowner Assistance, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resources, Online Course, Prescribed Fires, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tree Farm

Florida Land Steward Update, May 1, 2026

by Chris Demers
May 1, 2026

BE PREPARED FOR WILDFIRE Hopefully we’ll be getting some much-needed rain by the time you see this update, but it is dry out there and wildfire risk is very high in many areas. Each year, wildfires burn across the United States. At the ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Recreation, SFYL Hot Topic, Water, Wildlife
Tags: Family Forest, Florida Land Steward Program, Forest Health, Forest Management, Hurricane Recovery, Invasive Species, Landowner Assistance, Longleaf Pine, Natural Resources, Online Course, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, Tree Farm, Wildfire

Students discover which invasive plant species are commonly lurking in Gainesville stores and nurseries

by Suzette Cook
April 29, 2026

Two University of Florida juniors took a deep dive into invasive plant species being sold in the Gainesville area. UF/IFAS School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics (SFFGS) students Natalie Vargas and Luis Hernandez launched an undercover ... READ MORE

Category: Conservation, Invasive Species, Natural Resources
Tags: Invasive Species, Natural Resource Conservation, Natural Resources, School Of Forest Fisheries And Geomatics Sciences, UF-IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Urban Forestry Extension

The Florida Lubber Grasshopper

by Maria Quirico
April 21, 2026

The Eastern Lubber Grasshopper, Romalea microptera, is a destructive pest in FL. The large, 2-3" yellow-tawny adults have short wings (microptera) making them unable to fly. Their common name, “lubber” comes from the old English word ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Management, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Teaching, Wildlife, Work & Life
Tags: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Gardening, Insects Affecting Plants, Invasive Species, Residential Horticulture

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