ERDC TN-EMRRP-ER-21 "Russian Olive Biology, Invasion, and Ecological Impacts in Western North America"

INTRODUCTION: The United States Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) Ecosystem Management and Restoration Research Program (EMRRP) is supporting a nationwide effort to address the impact of invasive woody plant species on ecosystem restoration, and more specifically, to determine mechanisms to address the most regionally prevalent invasive species impacting restoration activities. The research effort has four objectives: (1) Identify the suite of invasive woody riparian plants that are most problematic to USACE ecosystem restoration efforts, (2) develop guidelines that suggest thresholds for when and where on the landscape funds should be spent to control invasive woody plants, (3) determine the most efficient and ecologically effective spatial configuration for woody invasive riparian plant removal on USACE managed lands, and (4) investigate how faunal communities respond to various spatial control methods for woody invasive plant removal in densely vegetated riparian habitats. This technical note supports the first objective and focuses on Russian olive (Elaeagnus angustifolia L.), a species that invades riparian ecosystems of the western United States and can be problematic for ecosystem restoration efforts.