ECOLOGY:
Field Test Backs Model for Invader
Christine Mlot
MADISON, WISCONSIN--Researchers trying to forecast the degree of damage that will be caused by an invasive species have devised computer models for target species. Here at the annual meeting of the Ecological Society of America last week, a researcher presented results that meld such modeling with field tests of a weed currently plaguing the southeastern United States. And although the results are grim, they demonstrate the importance of attacking weeds early in their invasion, before they take hold.