One does not have to look very far to see and hear stories of invasive species and the environmental damage they can cause. They take many forms and can affect different elements of our ecosystem. Certainly, few people have not heard about zebra mussels and how they have spread to so many of our water bodies. How about the Asian carp – displacing native species in waterways in North America and videos showing how dangerous it is to boat through those waterways as the fish literally jump into the boat endangering passengers. Then there is the round goby – a fish from Eurasia that has displaced native fish species in more and more of our water bodies – thought to originally have been introduced through ballast water of ships. Spiny waterflea, Eurasian water-milfoil, garlic mustard, dog-strangling vine … the list goes on of damaging invasive species in Ontario.

It is thought that the Asian long-horned beetle was introduced to the Toronto area by way of wooden shipping pallets. Thirty thousand trees were removed in an effort to stop its spread and it was declared eradicated from that infestation in the spring of 2013. Unfortunately, another infestation was found in August 2013 near the Pearson airport, requiring all infested and susceptible trees within 800 metres removed in an effort to stop that infestation from spreading. If this insect was able to spread to the broader forests of central Ontario, including Parry Sound-Muskoka, I shudder at what the impacts would be as all maples, birches, poplars and willows could succumb to this insect.

People should particularly familiarize themselves with giant hogweed. This invasive plant has been found in isolated places in our region. What makes it of particular concern, is that it is poisonous requiring a person to wash their skin immediately in cool soapy water and not to expose the affected area to sunlight. It can reach over three metres tall so a person’s skin can easily come in contact with this plant. A simple Internet search can help identify this noxious weed.

These invasive species often have no native enemies here so can quickly build up populations and dominate their environments. So many of these infestations of invasive species seem to be out of our own control. The problems seem too big for us as individuals to impact. There is a tendency to ignore them because we cannot have any effect – or can we? The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is the governmental agency that impose rules on imports, carries out inspections of imported material and identifies regulated areas from which the movement of infected material cannot occur. But is helping prevent the spread of invasive species the sole responsibility of government?

These invasive species often have no native enemies here so can quickly build up populations and dominate their environments.

Purple loosestrife on the surface is an attractive plant that can overwhelm native plant species in our wetlands. Despite devastating impacts to our wetlands, some homeowners have insisted on planting them in their gardens because of the cosmetic appeal of the plant, with seed dispersal into surrounding areas beginning their march into and through wild areas.

The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters and the Ontario Invading Species Awareness Program not only provide descriptions of invasive species but also provide advice on how to help prevent their spread. For example, anglers should not take bait from one water body to another and they should completely dry their boat and use a pressure washer to ensure that zebra mussels do not spread from one lake to another. There are many sources of information on the Internet about invasive species in Ontario and how you can help be the solution and not contribute the problem, but I would like to focus on forest pests.

Beech bark disease is killing our American beech trees and is of great concern to us at Westwind Forest Stewardship Inc. as we are responsible for the forest management in Parry Sound-Muskoka. Although it has been in Canada for a century, beech bark disease has been slow to spread through Ontario, though it has been in our province for several years now but not in Muskoka-Parry Sound. That has changed as of a few years ago. Already trees are dying at alarming rates.

From Baysville and Dorset in the east to Parry Sound in the west, untold numbers of our beech trees are infected or are dying and there is nothing we can do to stop it. Beech is a smooth-barked tree and a tiny insect called the beech scale feeds on the tree and can be identified by a whitish miniature cotton-like coating. Although the feeding of many insects can affect the health of the tree, it is an airborne pathogen that can invade the tree through these feeding holes. Although the actual biology is complex, the result of an American beech tree + beech scale + pathogen = beech bark disease, which will usually result in the death of the tree. On the Canadian Shield, we are seeing beech dying very quickly after the disease is noticeable. Some of the highest populations of scale insect has been seen in and around some of our area parks, presumably because people have brought their own wood to the park and have unknowingly carried the insect along with them. In some cases “beech snap” is occurring where the trees break in two, creating a safety concern. Wood supply and good forest management practices are being thwarted. Beech provide beechnuts, arguably the most common and therefore valuable hard mast (like acorns) for populations of deer, bear, birds and small mammals.

The emerald ash borer, native to Asia, was responsible for the death of millions of ash trees in southwestern Ontario since 2002 and significant efforts were made to slow its spread. Still, it only takes one individual to cut down that sickly ash on their property for firewood, and then maybe take a bundle of it to the cottage or camping with them to start a new outbreak. I doubt if anyone reading this article would intentionally contribute to the spread of an insect that could endanger all of our ash trees in Parry Sound-Muskoka, but it can easily be done.

It is just a safer practice to obtain your firewood for your cottage, private or provincial campground from local sources. Private woodlands, parks, Crown land and trees in our towns can and will suffer from introduced forest pests. This can then affect property values, wildlife habitat, the overall ecology of our woodlands, as well as the social and economic benefits that healthy forests provide to our communities. Paying a few dollars for that bundle of local firewood for your campfire is a small price to pay to not be responsible for introducing more forest pests into our local wooded environments.