Got Nature? Blog

A new Indiana law went into effect on July 1st, that may help you mark your property boundaries more efficiently to prevent trespassing. The “purple paint law” is found in Indiana Code IC 35-43-2-2 and stipulates that appropriately applied purple paint can be used to mark your property with the same legal effect as using a No Trespassing sign. Landowners attempting to protect their property from trespassing have often been frustrated by the need to post signs and replace signs torn down, vandalized, or rendered unreadable by the elements. Marking boundaries with purple paint should provide a more efficient and inexpensive option, as well as eliminating placing nails in your trees.

Below are the guidelines for applying the paint marks to indicate a No Trespassing area.

1.  Each purple mark must be readily visible to any person approaching the property and must be placed on:
   •  a tree:
     • as a vertical line of at least eight (8) inches in length and with the bottom of the mark at least three (3) feet and not more than five (5) feet from the ground; and
     • not more than one hundred (100) feet from the nearest other marked tree; or
   •  a post:
     • with the mark covering at least the top two (2) inches of the post, and with the bottom or the mark at least (3) feet and not more than five (5) feet six (6) inches from the ground; and
     • not more than thirty-six (36) feet from the nearest other marked post; and
2.  Before a purple mark that would be visible from both sides of a fence shared by different property owners or lessees may be applied, all of the owners or lessees of the properties must agree to post the properties with purple marks under subsection (c)(4).

You can view the code at: Indiana General Assembly.

Consider using a high quality boundary marking paint to extend the lifespan of your paint applications.

Resources:
Indiana General Assembly, Private Property and Trespassing Code of Indiana
Private Property Rights: Rights, Responsibilities & Limitations, The Education Store, Purdue Extension’s resource center

Lenny D Farlee, Extension Forester
Purdue University Department of Forestry and Natural Resources

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If you care about wild animals, let them be wild. Most young wild animals you encounter are not orphaned. What may seem like an abandoned animal is normal behavior for most wildlife, to avoid predators. Picking up a wild animal you think is orphaned or abandoned is unnecessary and can be harmful to the animal or you.

If you find a wild animal that is truly abandoned, sick or injured, here is what you can do:

• Leave it alone, in its natural environment. Don’t turn wildlife into pets.
• Call a licensed wild animal rehabilitator who is trained in caring for wild animals.
• If the animal is sick or severely injured, call a licensed veterinarian.

Resources:
Mammals of Indiana, J.O. Whitker and R.E. Mumford
Common Indiana Mammals, The Nature of Teaching, The Education Store-Purdue Extension’s resource center
Orphaned and Injured Animals, Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)

MyDNR Indiana’s Outdoor News, Indiana Department of Natural Resources

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Jennifer Koch, and other researchers with the U.S. Forest Service, has spent the last several years studying what are known as lingering ash – trees that have fared much better against the emerald ash borer. The invasive beetle, which came to North America from Asia about 20 years ago, has killed millions of ash trees around the Midwest.

But for reasons that researchers are learning more about, some trees have survived.

Koch says they’ve identified at least two reasons why. Lingering ash seem to attract fewer hungry adult ash borers, which means they’re less likely to become homes to eggs. And when eggs do hatch on lingering ash trees, they tend to be smaller and have a higher mortality rate.

Those are extremely valuable characteristic for modern ash trees, so Koch is making sure they get passed on through cloning. Not genetic modification, but rather clonal duplicates of lingering ash literally cut from part of the parent tree.

Maybe most importantly, Koch says the cloned trees appear to be even more resistant to the ash borer. With their cloned trees healthy and growing, researchers are waiting on the next generation of seeds to see if they’re even more resistant than their cloned parents.

Koch says they plan to add more lingering ash seedlings into their on-site orchard this year. Ash trees planted from seed typically take seven to 10 years to begin giving off seeds of their own, so it could be another decade before Koch knows just how successful their ash tree breeding program can be.

See full article: Attack Of The Clones: Ohio Researchers Find New Hope For Fighting Ash Borer, WOSU Public Media

Resources:
Question: What options do we have to treat our ash trees against the Emerald Ash Borer?, Got Nature?, Purdue Extension-FNR
Invasive Pest Species: Tools for Staging and Managing EAB in the Urban Forest, Got Nature?, Purdue Extension-FNR
Emerald Ash Borer, Purdue Extension-Entomology
Emerald Ash Borer Tools & Resources – Purdue Extension Entomology

WOSU Radio, Columbus, Ohio

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Preventing the establishment of new invasive species is priority number one and the best expenditure of limited resources in an invasive species management program. Next in priority is early detection of and rapid response (EDRR) to the first report of a new invasion. Stopping invasive species from entering or, next best, at their initial point of introduction saves the incalculable costs later-on associated with rapidly spreading, all-consuming invasive species populations. The verification of a report of mile-a-minute vine (Persicaria perfoliata) on a property in Monroe County, Indiana on May 14, 2018 sets a historical precedence demonstrating a growing capability of detecting and reporting new invaders. The population was very small at this spot and had apparently been sprayed by a homeowner with herbicide, not necessarily to kill the mile-a-minute, but likely to kill the companion multiflora rose.

Our hope is that this is the only instance of mile-a-minute vine in Indiana. There is a significant probability that it is not! In the coming months, a more thorough survey of this property and surrounding area will be conducted to look for more of the vine. But now Indiana stands on high alert as natural resource professionals keep a look out for more of this highly-invasive pest. However, there are too few professionals with eyes on the landscape. The more eyes trained to identify the very distinct characteristics of mile-a-minute, the higher the chance of us catching it before it explodes across the landscape, wreaking havoc and mayhem in our forests and fields, wildlife habitat and mushroom hunting and birding grounds.

All landowners, land stewards, and nature lovers are needed to be additional eyes looking for this insidious threat this summer and in coming years. Please take a moment to learn its identifying characteristics. If you think you have found it, please report it on EDDMapS (Early Detection & Distribution Mapping System) or from your smart phone on the GLEDN (Great Lakes Early Detection Network) app. If you are unsure if you are correctly identifying it, please contact a forester or other natural resource professional for confirmation or just report it in EDDMapS or the GLEDN app, along with photos, and a professional in your area will verify its identification before it actually gets posted.

Mile-a-minute identification:
Mile-a-minute vine is a member of the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Although its common name exaggerates its growth potential, this annual vine can grow as much as 6 inches a day and can reach heights of more than 25 feet within the growing season. It forms very dense, tangled mats, growing over shrubs, small trees and up the sides of forest edges (Fig. 1). The leaves are simple, alternate, light green and a nearly perfect triangle shape (Fig. 2). The delicately narrow, green to red-tinted stems, and the petiole (leaf stem) and midrib on the underside of the leaves are armed with small, stiff, recurved barbs (Fig. 3). Small, cup- or saucer-shaped leaf structures, called ocreae, encircle the stem at each node (Fig. 4). Clusters of small white, rather inconspicuous, flowers emerge from the ocreae. Flowers develop into clusters of deep, iridescent blue berry-like fruits, approximately 5 mm in diameter, each fruit containing a single black or reddish-black hard seed, called an achene. Seeds are dispersed by birds and mammals, including chipmunks, squirrels and deer, which eat the fruit. Floodwaters facilitate long distance dispersal of seed.

Resources:
Mile-a-Minute Vine, FNR-481-W, The Education Store, Purdue Extension’s resource center
Mile-a-minute vine: What you need to know about the plant that can grow 6 inches a day, Indianapolis Star
Invasive Species – Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)
Ask an Expert – Purdue Extension-Forestry and Natural Resources
Indiana Invasive Species Council – Includes: IDNR, Purdue Department of Entomology and Professional Partners
EDDMaps – Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System
Report Invasives, College of Agriculture
Great Lakes Early Detection Network App (GLEDN) – The Center for Invasive Species & Ecosystem Health

Ron Rathfon, Regional Extension Forester SIPAC
Purdue Department of Forestry and Natural Resources

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The evergreen bagworm, as its name implies, is well known for its ability to defoliate evergreen trees and shrubs like spruce, arborvitae, fir, junipers and pine. When given a chance, it will also feed on deciduous trees like maples, honeylocust, and crabapples. In late May and early June bagworms hatch from eggs that overwinter in the bag of their mother. When young bagworms begin feeding on broadleaved plants the caterpillars are too small to feed all the way through, so they leave circular patterns of skeletonization. Bagworms can be easily controlled with a spray application of spinosad (Conserve, or Fertilome borer and bagworm killer), or Bacillus thuringiensis (Dipel). More control options are available on the Purdue Tree Doctor App, purdueplantdoctor.com.

View this video located on the Purdue Plant Doctor App Suite Facebook page to watch a young bagworm caterpillar poke its head out of its silken bag to feed on a maple leaf. The young caterpillar scrapes the leaf surface to feed, and cuts bits of green tissue and glues it on its back. At the end of the video it sticks out its legs and flips the entire bag over to hide from the lights.

Resources:
Purdue Plant Doctor Diagnosis Website, Purdue Extension
Landscape & Ornamentals: Bagworms, Extension Entomology
Ask An Expert, Purdue Extension-Forestry & Natural Resources
Invasive Forest Pests in IN, Purdue Extension-Entomology
Indiana Invasive Species Council
Report Invasives
Purdue Landscape Report, Purdue University
Find an Arbroist, Trees are Good-International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)

Purdue University Department of Entomology – Extension

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Once aquatic invasive species (AIS) are established in a new environment, typically, they are difficult or impossible to remove. Even if they are removed, their impacts are often irreversible. It is much more environmentally and economically sound to prevent the introduction of new AIS through thoughtful purchasing and proper care of organisms. Check out Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant’s web page the Aquatic Invasive Species and find resources for teachers, water garden hobbyists, aquatic landscaping designers and to aquatic enthusiasts.  The video titled Beauty Contained: Preventing Invasive Species from Escaping Water Gardens is also available which contains guidelines that were adopted from the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council and the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force along with addressing the care and selection of plants and animals for water gardens.

Resources:
Aquatic Invaders in the Marketplace, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
Great Lakes Sea Grant Network (GLERL), NOAA – Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
Indiana Bans 28 Invasive Aquatic Plants, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG), Newsroom
A Field Guide to Fish Invaders of the Great Lake Regions, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
Purdue Researchers Get to the Bottom of Another Quagga Mussel Impact, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
Protect Your Waters, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service & U.S. Coast Guard
Clean Boat Programs, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension

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Quagga mussels, which arrived in Lake Michigan in the 1990s via ballast water discharged from ships, have colonized vast expanses of the Lake Michigan bottom, reaching densities as high as roughly 35,000 quagga mussels per square meter. The invasive species that can have major economic impacts filters up to 4 liters of water per day, and so far seems unaffected by any means of population control. It is also a constant threat to other systems, as it is readily transported between water bodies.

Researchers have long known that these voracious filter feeders impact water quality in the lake, but their influence on water movement had remained largely a mystery.

“Although Lake Michigan is already infested with these mussels, an accurate filtration model would be imperative for determining the fate of substances like nutrients and plankton in the water,” Purdue University PhD candidate David Cannon said. “In other quagga mussel-threatened systems, like Lake Mead, this could be used to determine the potential impact of mussels on the lake, which could in turn be used to develop policy and push for funding to keep mussels out of the lakes.”

For full article and video view Purdue Researchers Get to the Bottom of Another Quagga Mussel Impact.

Resources:
A Field Guide to Fish Invaders of the Great Lake Regions, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
Protect Your Waters, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service & U.S. Coast Guard
Profitability of Hybrid Striped Bass Cage Aquaculture in the Midwest, The Education Store, Purdue Extension resource center
A Guide to Marketing for Small-Scale Aquaculture Producers, The Education Store
Aquaculture Industry in Indiana Growing, Purdue Today
Sustainable Aquaculture: What does it mean to you?, The Education Store
Pond and Wildlife Management website, Purdue Extension
Fish Cleaning with Purdue Extension County Extension Director, Got Nature? Blog, Purdue Extension – Forestry and Natural Resources
Aquaponics: What to consider before starting your business, YouTube, Purdue Ag Economics
Aquatics & Fisheries, Playlist, YouTube, Purdue Extension – Forestry and Natural Resources

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG)
University of Illinois Extension and Purdue University Extension

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The Forest Pest Outreach and Survey Project at Purdue reminds us that early detection is the best way to slow the spread of invasive species. You can report invasive species by calling the Invasive Species hotline at 1-866-NO-EXOTIC (1-866-663-9684) or using the free Great Lakes Early Detection Network smartphone app, which can be downloaded on iTunes or Google Play. View video to see how easy it is to use the app, Great Lakes Early Detection Network App (GLEDN).

If you’re interested in learning more about invasive pests and how to report them, sign up for one of our free Early Detector Training workshops!

National Invasive Species Awareness Week: February 27-March 3, 2017.

Resources:
Invasive Species – Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR)
Ask an Expert – Purdue Extension-Forestry and Natural Resources
Indiana Invasive Species Council – Includes: IDNR, Purdue Department of Entomology and Professional Partners
Invasive Species Week a reminder to watch for destructive pests, Purdue entomologist says – Purdue Agriculture News

Sara Stack, MS student
Purdue Department of Entomology

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Bovine tuberculosis (bovine Tb) is an on-going issue in Indiana’s wild white-tailed deer herd. Bovine Tb was first discovered in wild deer in Indiana in August 2016 near a bovine Tb positive cattle farm in Franklin County. Since August 2017, Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the Board of Animal Health have been monitoring and managing the bovine Tb situation. A second cattle farm in Franklin County tested positive for bovine Tb in December 2016, but no hunter harvested deer have tested positive for bovine Tb during the 2016 deer season. The IDNR will continue to monitor and manage the bovine Tb situation according to a departmental management plan. View the following web page to find more information, Bovine Tb in Wild White-Tailed Deer: Background and Frequently Asked Questions.

Resources:
How to Score Your White-tailed Deer, video, The Education Store, Purdue Extension Resource Center
White-Tailed Deer Post Harvest Collection, video, The Education Store
Age Determination in White-tailed Deer, video, The Education Store
How to Build a Plastic Mesh Deer Exclusion Fence, The Education Store
Bovine Tuberculosis in Wild White-tailed Deer, The Education Store
Indiana Deer Hunting, Biology and Management, and Safe Food Handling and Preparation, IDNR

Jarred Brooke, Wildlife Extension Specialist
Purdue Department of Forestry and Natural Resources

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Purdue Extension’s Don’t be a Zombie exhibit is traveling the country to illustrate the need to prepare for emergencies. It urges people to be ready for an emergency and have a plan. Don’t Wait. Communicate. Make an Emergency Communication Plan for you and your family because you just don’t know when disasters will impact your community. At the Indiana State Fair, almost 60,000 visitors got a chance to check out the Don’t be a Zombie – Be Prepared exhibit, complete with zombies, interactive displays, maze, and even a video game made to simulate a zombie apocalypse!

The display aims to have its viewers take away four main points:

• Be informed – know what threats may affect your community
• Make a family emergency plan – a plan for everyone and everything in case of disaster
• Make a 72-hour emergency kit – enough supplies for everyone involved, along with first-aid, a crank radio, and a gallon of water per person each day
• Practice and maintain these plans regularly – a plan is only good if it is up to date and known by everyone

The Don’t Be a Zombie exhibit is currently travelling to museums all over the country, its existence thanks to the collaboration between Purdue Extension and EDEN, a prime source for disaster preparedness information.

Resources:
Purdue Agriculture Traveling Exhibit Program
First Steps to Flood Recovery, The Education Store
Keeping Food Safe During Emergencies, The Education Store

Purdue Traveling Exhibit Program

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