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<DIV><EM>Thanks to Dennis L. Krusac for this:</EM></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Laurie: Below is a link to a recent article regarding invasive
species removal and butterfly abundance. I thought it might be of interest
to the pollinator group. Abstract is below. <BR><BR><FONT size=3>Invasive
plants are one of the greatest threats to endangered insect species and a major
threat to Lepidoptera in eastern North America. We investigated the effects of
the invasive shrub Chinese privet (Ligustrum sinense) and two methods (mulching
or hand-felling) of removing it from riparian forests on butterfly communities
and compared them to untreated, heavily invaded control plots and to ‘‘desired
future condition’’ forests that never had extensive privet cover. Privet
mulching resulted in nearly twice as many butterflies as privet felling and both
treatments had more butterflies two years after privet removal than untreated
control plots. Butterfly communities on control plots differed from those on the
two treatments and the desired future condition forests. A number of forest
characteristics were evaluated but only herbaceous plant cover (excluding
privet) was positively correlated with butterfly abundance, diversity and
evenness. The Carolina satyr, Hermeuptychia sosybius, was the best indicator of
forests where privet had never invaded. Removing Chinese privet from riparian
forests in the southeastern United States greatly improved forest habitats for
butterflies and evidence suggests that butterfly communities in other temperate
forests could benefit from removal of extensive shrub layers dominated by a
single species.</FONT> <BR><BR><A title=http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6T6X-52XTJBF-1-1&_cdi=5042&_user=4250274&_pii=S0378112711002635&_origin=browse&_zone=rslt_list_item&_coverDate=08/15/2011&_sk=997379995&wchp=dGLbVzW-zSkWl&md5=378673f0c12c42dbcdf82ebc5c18c5cd&ie=/sdarticle.pdf href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6T6X-52XTJBF-1-1&_cdi=5042&_user=4250274&_pii=S0378112711002635&_origin=browse&_zone=rslt_list_item&_coverDate=08%2F15%2F2011&_sk=997379995&wchp=dGLbVzW-zSkWl&md5=378673f0c12c42dbcdf82ebc5c18c5cd&ie=/sdarticle.pdf"><FONT color=blue size=3><U>http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=MImg&_imagekey=B6T6X-52XTJBF-1-1&_cdi=5042&_user=4250274&_pii=S0378112711002635&_origin=browse&_zone=rslt_list_item&_coverDate=08%2F15%2F2011&_sk=997379995&wchp=dGLbVzW-zSkWl&md5=378673f0c12c42dbcdf82ebc5c18c5cd&ie=/sdarticle.pdf</U></FONT></A><FONT size=3> </FONT><BR><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Dennis L.
Krusac<BR>Endangered Species Specialist<BR>USDA Forest Service, Southern
Region<BR>Suite 816 North, 1720 Peachtree Road, NW<BR>Atlanta, GA
30309<BR>404-347-4338; 404-347-4154 (fax); 404-660-4377
(cell)<BR>dkrusac@fs.fed.us<BR><BR>"What is the use of a house if you haven't
got a tolerable planet to put it on?" Henry David
Thoreau<BR><BR></DIV></FONT></FONT></BODY></HTML>