World Governments Fail to Deliver on 2010 Biodiversity Target (Apr 29, 2010)
Birdlife International.
World leaders have failed to deliver commitments made in 2002 to reduce the global rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, and have instead overseen biodiversity declines according to the article Global Diversity: Indicators of Recent Decline, published in Science. These findings represent the first assessment of how the targets made through the 2002 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have not been met. Most indicators of the state of biodiversity showed declines, with no significant recent reductions in rate, whereas indicators of pressures on biodiversity (including invasive alien species) showed increases.

Survey Reports Latest Honey Bee Losses (Apr 29, 2010)
USDA. Agricultural Research Service.
Losses of managed honey bee colonies nationwide totaled 33.8% from all causes from Oct 2009 to Apr 2010, up from 29% a year earlier and down from 35.8% during the 2007-2008 winter. Colony Collapse Disorder has killed billions of bees worldwide since 2006. See Colony Collapse Disorder for more information.

Periwinkle Plants Provide Ammunition in the War on Citrus Greening (Apr 21, 2010)
USDA. Agricultural Research Service.
ARS Plant Pathologists from the Horticultural Research Laboratory in Fort Pierce, Florida have teamed up with university colleagues to turn a pretty ornamental plant into a powerful tool for helping us beat back Huanglongbing, one of the worst bacterial diseases that's ever threatened our citrus crops.

Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior and Homeland Security Announce Partnership to Develop Comprehensive Wildfire Management Strategy (Apr 21, 2010)
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The secretaries announced the formation of a federal partnership with state, regional, local and tribal leaders to develop the Cohesive Wildfire Management Strategy 2010 to more effectively address America's wildland fire challenges. The requirements include studying the effects of invasive species on wildfire risk.

Species Profile -- White-Nose Syndrome
USDA. NAL. National Invasive Species Information Center.
White-nose Syndrome (WNS) has killed nearly 1,000,000 bats during the last three years. White-nose Syndrome was coined by biologists who observed a white fungus on the noses of affected bats. The fungus is new to science and may possibly be an invasive species.

Earth Day -- Apr 22, 2010
Earth Day Network.
Earth Day Network is partnered with National Environmental Education Week (Apr 11-17), which annually promotes understanding and protection of the natural world by actively engaging K-12th grade students and educators of all environmental subjects (see Educators' Network for lesson plans). Earth Day Network includes an event listing searchable by keywords, location and by date.

"Spring Creep" Favors Invasive Species: Spring is coming earlier, and nature is scrambling to keep up (Apr 21, 2010)
Scientific American.
Spring is coming earlier, and nature is scrambling to keep up, according to scientists who say climate change is to blame. The season starts an average of 10 days earlier in the U.S. than it did just 20 years ago. And that is scrambling the delicate balance of many ecosystems, as some species adapt to the change and others don't. For reasons scientists don't entirely understand, the climate mismatch appears to often favor invasive species over native species.

On the Loose: Non-Native Species Could Escape from Spanish Zoos (Apr 16, 2010)
Conservation Magazine. Journal Watch Online.
A survey of zoos in Spain has revealed that many animal enclosures are not secure, increasing the risk that non-native and invasive species will make their way into the wild.

Sustain Our Great Lakes Program Announces $7.6 Million in Grants to Protect and Restore Great Lakes (Apr 8, 2010)
Sustain Our Great Lakes.
Michigan congressional representatives, federal agencies partners and local officials announced 25 projects selected to receive a total of $7.6 million in funding through the Sustain Our Great Lakes program. These projects will help protect, restore and enhance the ecological integrity of the lakes and surrounding region by restoring critical aquatic and terrestrial habitats, controlling invasive species, protecting rare natural communities, improving passage for fish and other aquatic organisms, and educating citizens on how to protect the ecosystem.

Deadly Fungus (white-nose syndrome) Threatens 9 Bat Species in GA, KY, NC, SC and TN, Expert Says (Apr 7, 2010)
USDA. FS. Southern Research Station.
A leading bat expert identified nine bat species in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee that she believes are most threatened by white-nose syndrome (WNS), a fungus that kills bats and appears to be rapidly spreading south from the northeastern U.S. WNS has been confirmed in Tennessee, and she says it is just a matter of time before the fungus is detected in Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and South Carolina.

4,000-Year Study Supports Use of Controlled Burns (Apr 6, 2010)
Duke University.
A study by Duke University researchers, reconstructing thousands of years of fire history in the southern Appalachians supports the use of prescribed fire, or controlled burns, as a tool to reduce the risk of wildfires, restore and maintain forest health and protect rare ecological communities in the region's forests. The study, Reconstructing Holocene fire history in a southern Appalachian forest using soil charcoal, appears in the Mar 31 issue of Ecology.