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FWS employee holding Asian swamp eels. Credit: USFWS

Control and Management of Aquatic Nuisance Species

When an aquatic nuisance species (ANS) has established in a new location and eradication is no longer feasible, preventing spread and lessening their impacts through control and management becomes the focus.  Control and management means much more that just physically harvesting or otherwise trying to destroy the species.  Comprehensive control and management of ANS includes diverse objectives such as eradication within a localized area, limiting dispersal, reducing impacts, education and outreach and even research on control methods.

Because invasive species span geographic and jurisdictional boundaries, their control and management requires coordinated action.  Information concerning the distribution, abundance, rates of spread, and impacts of the species is critical to regional planning and management efforts.  Understanding the diverse ecological, economic, and social impacts of ANS is important to prioritizing control and management options.

A variety of control “tools” are needed to contain, remove, and assess ANS populations and guide management decisions. These tools are applied within an overall integrated ANS management strategy that can be adjusted through an adaptive management process.  Actual control of ANS can include physical restraints, removal, pesticides, biological controls or reproduction interference.  There are many species that are not currently being controlled or managed in any way due to their widespread occurrence, or lack of effective control and management techniques.

• The ANS Task Force has national control and management plans finalized for several species and has two more plans under development. Please visit the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force web site for more information.

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