Purple Loosestrife Volunteer Survey Guide (Draft)

1.      First, use the Eastern Chippewa Flowage Map to navigate to your survey section(s), and fill in the Date and Survey Section you are surveying on the Purple Loosestrife Data Sheet.

2.      Once at the start of your survey section you may start your survey by traveling slowly down the shoreline.  Travel in your boat at a close proximity to the shoreline.

3.      Once you find a purple loosestrife infestation you will stop traveling and fill in the following information; (Make sure the Purple Loosestrife has been identified properly.)

·         Mark the Survey Section Map with the Map Location # (ML).

·         On the Purple Loosestrife Data Sheet the column ML represents the map location number you used to identify the infestation.

·         In the row with the correct ML number give a Location Description.  This is a short description of the location of the infestation with in your survey section.  It will be used for locating the infestation at a later date. 

·         Number of plants (Plant #) will also be recorded in three categories: <50, 50-1000, or >1000 (Falck 2000). 

·         Beetle presence will be recorded by writing either yes (beetles or beetle damage is present), no (no beetles or beetle damage present), or did not check.  Attempts should be made to record whether or not there is beetle presence at an infestation, unless the volunteer is unable to access the plants in a safe manner.

·         Shoreline type will be recorded as either forest, bog, aquatic/cattails, lowland/swamp, or open/grassy.

·         Shoreline will be classified as Developed or Natural and recorded in the Shoreline Column using a “D” or a “N”.  Developed shoreline is shoreline that is obviously adjacent to private property.  Natural shoreline is shoreline that is not.

·         Flower heads should be removed at every site the volunteer is able to safely access the infestation, and then recorded in the Removed column as a yes (flower heads were removed) or a no (flower heads were not removed).  This will help prevent a large scale infestation and make future control/eradication efforts much easier.  Also, make sure you put the any plant parts in a bag, and that you either burn, control compost, or trash the removed plants otherwise you may help spread the infestation.

·         Other information that will prove useful to purple loosestrife management will be provided in the “Notes” column (i.e. clumped or individual plants, native vegetation, beetles present, beetle damage, etc.) 

·          If other invasive plant species are present follow the same procedures as above and highlight the data by writing the plant name in the margin of the data sheet.

4.      Once you have completed all information needed on the Purple Loosestrife Data Sheet and marked the infestation on the Survey Section Map you may continue down the shoreline of your survey section.  (Return to #3).

5.      Once completed with the survey you may mail it back or contact Erik Olson @ 715-634-4790 X175 and he will arrange to have it picked up. 

Note: Survey Sections must be surveyed once from mid-July to the end of August.  An example of how to record data is available on the Purple Loosestrife Data Sheet.  Do not forget to mark the Survey Section Map with the Map Location # (ML).

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