Green Horizons - University Of Missouri

green horizonsGrowing tomorrow’s future today.Winter 2021Volume 25 Number 1A newsletter from the Center for Agroforestry inconjunction with the Forest and Woodland Association of Missouri Editors: Mike Gold, Hank Stelzer, Hannah Hemmelgarn,and Raelin s/newsletters.phpBrown-headed Nuthatches return to Missouripine woodlandsKristen Heath-Acre, Research Assistant, School of Natural ResourcesFrank R Thompson III, Research Wildlife Biologist, USDA Forest ServiceSarah Kendrick, State Ornithologist, Missouri Department of ConservationTom Bonnot, Research Assistant Professor, School of Natural ResourcesJane Fitzgerald, Central Hardwoods Joint Venture, American BirdConservancyForty-six Brown-headed Nuthatches were released in restored shortleafpine woodlands of Mark Twain National Forest in Missouri in August andSeptember 2020 after years of collaborative effort by state and federalagencies. The Brown-headed Nuthatch is a small and charismatic songbirdwith a squeaky call like a rubber ducky. They were reported in Missouriover a century ago but disappeared, likely due to the loss of pine woodlandscaused by exploitative logging and fire suppression in the late 1800s andearly 1900s. This reintroduction was made possible by decades of habitatrestoration by Mark Twain National Forest and partners as part of theU.S.D.A. Forest Service’s Collaborative Forest Landscape RestorationProgram (CFLRP).Many species of birds of conservation concern are benefitting from thelandscape-level habitat restoration practices that are being used by theCFLRP to restore pine woodlands. However, Brown-headed Nuthatchesneeded a helping hand in returning to Missouri. The Brown-headedNuthatch is a non-migratory, resident bird that does not typically fly longdistances. Therefore, it was highly unlikely they would find their way torestored habitat in Missouri that is over 200 miles from the nearestpopulations in Arkansas. Given these circumstances, and with widespreadsupport by stakeholders, our team moved Brown-headed Nuthatches froma large population on the Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas tosoutheast Missouri.IN THIS ISSUEConservation . pg 2, 4-6, 10, 14-16Forestry.pg 3, 8-9, 11Volunteer .pg 7Agroforestry .pg 12-13Shortleaf pine woodland. Photo credit:MSU Extension Service/John KushlaThe 12th Annual AgroforestrySymposium: CommunityHealth & Resilient FoodSystemsA virtual gathering with engagingwebinars, research posters,exhibitors and roundtablenetworking.January 28 – 30, 2021 9am –12:30pm CT each dayEntirely Online!Free and Open to the Public!Register at https://whova.com/portal/registration/agrof 202101/More information at ia.phpContinued on page 2.

CONSERVATION2Our team worked in collaboration with state and federal agencies and conservation groups in Missouri andArkansas and with nuthatch expert Jim Cox from Tall Timbers Research Station in Florida. We capturednuthatches in Arkansas and transported them by plane to Missouri. We marked nuthatches with color-bandsand half were tagged with a tiny radio transmitter about the weight of a paperclip. This made it possible for us totrack their movements and survival after their release in Missouri. Our goal is to release 100 nuthatches overtwo years and this year’s release of 46 birds puts us well on our way to meeting that goal.Our monitoring efforts suggest the birds are doing great in Missouri. We experienced no mortalities during thecapture, translocation, and release. The birds are moving around and exploring the pine woodlands on theCFLRP, socializing in small groups as we would expect them to. This is a great example of ecosystem restoration-- when you bring back the habitat, you can bring back some of the species that have been lost along the way.We brought the squeak back to Missouri! We encourage people to visit these restored shortleaf pine woodlandsin the area 5 miles south of Fremont Missouri off Highway J and look for this charismatic species. There is alsoa self-guided tour of the larger restoration effort elf-guidedtour).Besides documentation that this bird once occurred here, this reintroduction is particularly relevant from aclimate change perspective. Our research suggests these pine-woodland ecosystems are well adapted topredicted future changes in our climate. This release in many ways is a test of a practice that may be needed inthe future to help some species keep pace with climate change.Collaborative partners that made this reintroduction possible include the Missouri Department ofConservation, U. S. Forest Service’s Northern Research Station, Mark Twain National Forest, Ouachita NationalForest, Tall Timbers Research Station, University of Missouri, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, theNature Conservancy, and the Central Hardwoods Joint Venture.Researchers put color bands on the nuthatches prior to release so they can beindividually identified when resighted during monthly surveys to determine theirmovements and survival.

3FORESTRYWomen Owning Woodlands - MissouriSarah Havens, Field Specialist in Natural Resources, MU ExtensionWomen Owning Woodlands (WOW) is a national initiative thatwas originally funded by the U.S. Forest Service. The program isnow overseen by the Forest Stewards Guild. The initiative providesinformation and connections to women in natural resourcespositions to encourage women landowners in stewardship of theirland.The WOW program was started in Missouri in 2019. That year,introductory programs were started at several locations around thestate. These programs invited women to learn about WOW andmeet other women landowners. A WOW Timber Sale workshopwas also held in Phelps county in November of 2019. This programwas coordinated with Missouri Department of Conservation, theNatural Resources Conservation Service and the James Foundationat Maramec Springs. Ten women participants learned about theprocess of having a timber sale and then toured an MDC timbersale and heard from an MDC forester about the objectives of thesale.In 2020, WOW-Missouriwas set to hold several faceto-face programs and twofield days withvariouspartners across thestate.When COVID necessitatedthe cancellation ofinpersongatherings, WomenOwning Woodlands LunchandLearnswerescheduled instead, to growthe program and allowwomen landownerstobegin connecting with eachIother virtually. The virtualLunch and Learns coveredtopics ranging from forestmanagement practices to invasive species to wild edibles. Guestswere included from MDC, Pheasants/Quail Forever and Universityof Missouri Science, Technology and Biology departments. InAugust of 2020, WOW partnered with Pheasants/Quail Forever inMissouri through Women Caring for the Land and held a jointforest management practices field day in Ste. Genevieve. Thisprogram covered forest stand improvement, prescribed fire andtimber sales.WOW participants learning to usebiltmore sticks to estimate tree truckdiameter and height.The Lunch and Learn events were such asuccess that they will continue in 2021!This year, WOW-Missouri will starthosting the Lunch and Learns on a weeklybasis and with a virtual timber saleworkshop in February. We will continueto offer programs virtually to try andconnect women landowners with eachother and with natural resourcesprofessionals. This program aims toempower women landowners in an openand inviting environment and promotegood land stewardship.Questions about WOW-Missouri can bedirected to Sarah Havens, Field Specialistin Natural Resources with MU Extensionat havenss@missouri.edu or by calling573-458-6260.

CONSERVATION4The Case of the Mystery SeedSarah Phipps, Missouri Department of AgricultureEvery detective case begins with a deep voice describingthe scene, “On a Friday, late in the afternoon the endof July 2020, the state entomologist was nestled in hisoffice when he came across a curious email. Unsolicitedseeds from China were being sent to Missourians.Residents across the state were receiving small packagescontaining seeds labeled as earrings, rings and othersmall items. What sort of seeds, you ask? Why are theybeing shipped to people that didn’t order them? Well,that is part of the mystery. Stay with me as I explain.”The scam is called “brushing.” An e-commerce vendorPacket of acorns received in an unsolicited seedacquires names and addresses and creates fakeshipment from China. Photo credit: Collin Wamsleyaccounts. They ship the unaware recipients an inexpensive product, seed in this case. Once shipped, the vendor, under the guise of the recipient, submits a five-starpositive review on the recipient’s behalf to boost ratings and increase visibility on e-commerce sites.The narrator continues, “What is the trouble of this “brushing” scam? Well take your pick: The unsolicited seedcould be invasive, introduce diseases to local plants or be harmful to livestock. All foreign seeds shipped to theUnited States should have a health certificate guaranteeing the seeds meet import requirements. “Unsolicitedseeds can be trouble — trouble I say.”The National Identification Services (NIS) through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal andPlant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is aiding in identifying the mystery seeds. As of Dec. 4, 2020, theUSDA has collected 18,854 packages from all 50 states. Examinations of 8,482 of those packets has identified atotal of 469 taxa of seeds. Most of the seeds are common horticultural and ornamental species. They includecommon seeds such as sunflower, Brassica (i.e., mustard plants such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, rutabaga,bok choy), basil, beet, radish, watermelon, cucumber/melon, pumpkin, rose, carrot, tomato, corn, celery,dill, lettuce, pepper, onion, green bean, coriander and others.Thus far, the USDA has detected multiple "bad players" including two quarantine insect pests using X-ray andthree Federal Noxious weeds based on identifications by APHIS botanists: water spinach, Ipomoea aquatica,dodder, Cuscuta sp., and turkey berry, Solanum torvum. Also, six quarantine significant viruses or viroids havebeen identified using molecular testing. This emphasizes the need to raise public awareness about this scam. Wewant people aware that these unsolicited seeds have not followed proper protocol and, if planted, could bring aninvasive pest or plant to your home garden.Thankfully, Missouri has received approximately 1,600 reports from residents with the Missouri State PlantHealth Director’s office having collected approximately 800 packages and submitted 472 seed samples foridentification to APHIS’ National Identification Services (NIS). Missouri’s species list was identified from 72different seed taxa. Some of the seeds identified included corn, citrus, pigweed, zinnia and hibiscus seeds.Missouri received the following tree or shrub species from the seed samples: Acacia, Citrus, Malus, Moringa.Prunus and Quercus. While this is an encouraging start, we need to get the word out as much as possible tocontinue reporting any unsolicited seed that has been received.Continued on page 5.