Arizona Fish & Wildlife Conservation Office

Aquatic Nuisance Species

Efforts Underway to Control Invasive Aquatic Plant Along the Lower Colorado River

Giant salvinia is a floating, rootless, non-native, aquatic fern that forms large “mats” in quiet water of lakes and ponds, backwaters, and slow moving streams and rivers. Giant salvinia is often referred to as the world's most noxious aquatic weed because of its ability to negatively alter aquatic ecosystems by replacing native plants, preventing light and atmospheric oxygen from entering the water, and using dissolved oxygen in the water that is critical to the survival of fish and other aquatic life. Unfortunately, giant salvinia has recently found its way into the lower Colorado River , habitat that is critical to the survival of endangered razorback sucker and bonytail. AZFRO has been a member of the Giant Salvinia Task Force, a multi-agency group formed to strategize ways to, at the very least, control the spread of this invasive aquatic plant species. More recently, AZFRO has been contracted by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to begin an aggressive “spraying” program in an attempt to prevent the upstream migration of giant salvinia. Beginning in the early-summer of 2004 and continuing until fall, AZFRO personnel certified to apply herbicide will begin to target areas currently inhabited by giant salvinia and will monitor the effects of herbicide application in reducing the density and preventing the spread of existing mats throughout the lower Colorado River .
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