Abstract submissions for oral and poster presentations are no longer being accepted.
Crown vetch (Coronilla varia), Photo by Wisconsin DNR
The first Upper Midwest conference on invasive species will be held for the purpose of exchanging information on all invasive aquatic and terrestrial plants, animals, pests, and pathogens. The focus is to strengthen awareness of invasive species issues, prevention, and management. Expected presenters and attendees include: researchers, land managers, natural resource professionals, university personnel, landscapers, nursery, agricultural or forestry employees, environmental specialists, lake association members, land owners, government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, and anyone interested in controlling the spread of invasive species in the Upper Midwest.
Presenters may be affiliated with universities, municipal, state, or federal agencies, tribes, local governmental units, non-governmental organizations, industry, or other organizations involved with management and protection of natural resources. Conference sessions will include topics on aquatic and terrestrial invasive species organized along five themes: 1) ecology, impacts, and distribution; 2) prevention; 3) early detection, rapid response, containment, and preparedness; 4) control and management; and 5) restoration.
Presentations should be relevant to the Midwest. A program committee will review and approve abstracts for inclusion in the conference. Acceptance will be based on relevance to the conference's session topics and receipt of abstract by the deadline. Oral presentation slots may be limited. The program committee may request some abstracts be submitted as posters instead.
Please review the themes below to consider what category your presentation would best fit. If you don’t feel your presentation fits into one of these categories, we still welcome your submission and you may choose an “other” category.
1. Invasive Species Biology, Ecology, Impacts, and Distribution
- Biology, ecology, impacts, and distribution of invasive species.
2. Invasive Species Prevention
- Risk assessment, outreach and education, regulation, available technology, containment of established invasive species, proactive industry and agency procedures, proactive land management practices, and emerald ash borer preparedness.
3. Invasive Species Early Detection, Rapid Response, Containment and Preparedness
- Early detection surveys — design, results, modeling, and outreach; response planning — plans, exercises, lessons learned; response examples, and eradication efforts.
4. Invasive Species Control and Management
- Integrated pest management; silvicultural research, biological control, management tactics — chemical and non-chemical; and cooperative control efforts (e.g., Cooperative Weed Management Areas).
5. Post-Invasion Restoration
- Vegetation replacement — needs, funding opportunities, policy; monitoring—designs, plans, and successes; restoration limitations and challenges.
Guidelines for Abstracts
Abstracts may be submitted for oral presentations, posters, topical seminars, or as case studies. Abstracts for oral presentations and posters should not exceed 250 words. The conference will not be responsible for editing abstracts. All abstracts will be printed “as is”. Therefore, authors should carefully edit their abstracts before submission. Submit the abstracts ready for publication following the guidelines below:
1. Title: Submit the title exactly as you would like it to appear in the program (maximum 12 words).
2. Authors: If there are more than three authors, list remaining authors, including affiliation, in the “More than 3 authors” field. If there are multiple authors, please place an asterisk (*) after the name of the presenter of the paper or poster. Full contact information (affiliation, address, phone number, and email address in this order) should be included for the presenting author.
3. Body of abstract: Body of abstract should be a single paragraph and provide a brief description of the project, methods, results, and conclusions as appropriate to the topic.
4. Names of organisms: All organisms must be listed first by their common name with scientific names in parenthesis. Subsequent references to the organism may be by common name.
5. Names and application rates of pesticides: When referring to pesticides, initial reference should be to their common names (e.g., in Herbicide Handbook, Weed Science Society of America). Trade names can be used subsequently. Rates and units of measurement should be clear.
6. Numbers and units: Use either English or metric units, but do not mix them.
7. Biographical sketch: Please provide a brief biographical sketch (bio) in 150 words or less that outlines your expertise relative to your presentation. Bios will be provided to conference attendees, but submission of a bio does not constitute automatic acceptance of your oral presentation or poster.
Guidelines for Presentations
Oral Presentations
Oral presentations will be 20 or 30 minutes long depending upon the number of abstracts accepted. Upon acceptance, authors will be notified about the duration of their presentation. All oral presentations will use LCD projectors. Neither slide projectors nor overhead projectors will be available. All presentations must be in PowerPoint 2007 or Adobe Acrobat to ensure problem-free operation during the sessions. If you will be using a later version of PowerPoint, please be sure to back-save to PowerPoint 2007. If using PowerPoint, the presentation must be saved as a PowerPoint show file. Presenters must submit their presentation files, embedded video and audio clips at or before conference check-in. This will allow session chairs to load the files prior to sessions to ensure that your presentation runs properly. Presentation files will be deleted from all computers immediately after the conference and will not be shared without author permission.
Posters
Posters must not exceed 48 x 48 inches. Authors are strongly encouraged to discuss and interpret how their work benefits invasive species management at local, state, or regional levels.
Further instructions will be posted on this website and sent to all corresponding authors of accepted presentations. For general questions on abstract submission or presentation guidelines, contact bbergner@umisc2012.org.
Sample abstract submission:
Impact of mowing timing on Japanese hedge parsley (Torilis japonica) seed production
Rose Menyon Heflin, University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Agronomy
Mark J. Renz, University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Agronomy
1575 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706
(608) 263-7437
rheflin@wisc.edu
Corresponding Author:
Rose Menyon Heflin
University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Agronomy
Although a relatively new invader in Wisconsin, many believe that Japanese hedge parsley (Torilis japonica) will present a formidable challenge, and it is widely heralded as the next garlic mustard. As a prohibited/restricted species under new Wisconsin state legislation, management is required by law, and spreading Japanese hedge parsley seed, even accidentally during mowing, is illegal. This study investigated the impact of mowing timing on the quantity of Japanese hedge parsley seeds produced. Randomly sampled plants at three sites in south central Wisconsin (Black Earth, Madison, and Spring Green) were cut at different phenological stages throughout the summer. Data on phenology, height, aboveground biomass, and vegetation cover of Japanese hedge parsley were collected at each mowing interval. At every interval, cut plants were removed from the site and allowed to dry at room temperature. The seeds initially produced from cut plants were counted. Individual plants were revisited in the fall, and the seeds produced from resprouting tissue were also collected and counted. Results will provide important basic information on the phenology and ecology of this new invader, as well as specific information on how to manage Japanese hedge parsley with mowing to prevent seed production.
