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Texas

Provides selected Texas resources from agencies and organizations with an interest in the prevention, control, or eradication of invasive species.

Spotlights

  • USDA Asks for Help Protecting Citrus in the Lower Rio Grande Valley

    • Jun 10, 2022
    • USDA. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

    • The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) needs your help safeguarding Texas citrus from invasive citrus pests and diseases currently threatening livelihoods and agricultural production in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. APHIS employees in Cameron, Hidalgo, Willacy and Zapata counties are working with the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) to inspect and survey fruit trees in residential yards and commercial properties for signs of invasive fruit flies and citrus diseases, such as citrus canker and citrus greening. These pests and diseases, if allowed to become established or spread, could devastate grapefruit, sweet and sour orange, key lime, sweet lemon, and other types of fruit production in that area.

  • Quagga Mussels Detected for First Time in a Texas Reservoir

    • Feb 2, 2022
    • Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

    • The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) reports that invasive quagga mussels have been detected for the first time in Texas. The quagga mussel discovery was made by National Park Service (NPS) staff at the International Amistad Reservoir in the Rio Grande basin along the Texas-Mexico border near Del Rio. Quagga mussels are a close relative of the zebra mussel, which has invaded 33 Texas lakes across six river basins since it was first introduced in Texas in Lake Texoma in 2009. In addition to being the first detection of quagga mussels in Texas waters, this is also the first finding of any invasive mussel species in the Rio Grande basin.

      TPWD and partners monitor for invasive mussels in Texas lakes, but anyone who finds them in lakes where they haven’t been found before should report them immediately by emailing photos and location information to AquaticInvasives@tpwd.texas.gov.

  • APHIS Removes a Portion of Harris County in Texas from the Domestic Citrus Canker (Xanthomonas spp.) Quarantine Area

    • Aug 23, 2021
    • USDA. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

    • Effective immediately, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is removing a portion of Harris County within the Braeswood area of Houston, Texas, from citrus canker regulations. The successful partnership between APHIS and the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) has resulted in a citrus canker-free status in this area since 2016.

      On May 20, 2016, APHIS confirmed the positive identification of citrus canker in two adjacent sour orange trees in a city park in the Braeswood area of Houston, in Harris County, Texas. TDA removed and destroyed both positive citrus canker trees. TDA established an intrastate quarantine area for citrus canker that paralleled the federal citrus canker regulatory requirements specified in 7 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 301.75. APHIS completed a comprehensive delimiting survey around the area and found no additional citrus trees positive for citrus canker within the survey area. The removal of this quarantine area is reflected on the APHIS website, which also contains a description of all the current federal citrus canker quarantine areas.

  • Invasive Silver Carp Found in Texas Waters; Anglers Urged to Prevent Bait Bucket Transfers

    • Jul 15, 2021
    • Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

    • The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) received a report in late June that an invasive silver carp had been spotted in Choctaw Creek, a Texas tributary of the Red River approximately 15 miles downstream from Lake Texoma. "These are the first reports of silver carp from Texas waters, although they have previously been found in other areas of the Red River including just downstream from Lake Texoma in Oklahoma waters in 2019," said Dan Bennett, TPWD fisheries management biologist. "Invasive carp pose a significant risk to Lake Texoma’s ecosystem and boaters and there is adequate flow and upstream river area for them to become established and reproduce in the lake if introduced."

      Anyone who catches either silver carp or bighead carp in Texas waters is asked to report the sighting with location information and photos to AquaticInvasives@tpwd.texas.gov. Silver and bighead carp are prohibited exotic species in Texas and must be killed upon possession by beheading, gutting, gill-cutting or other means or placed on ice. Neither species can be possessed live.

  • Citrus Canker in Texas - Story Map

    • USDA. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

    • Explore this story map to see how you can help combat this damaging citrus disease in Texas. Provides an overview, quarantined areas, and how to report a sick tree.
      See also: APHIS Interactive Maps to explore plant and animal health or wildlife damage management data and an index of APHIS Maps

  • Eyes in the Field: Citizen Scientists

    • TexasInvasives.org.

    • The Invaders of Texas Program is an innovative campaign whereby volunteer "citizen scientists" are trained to detect the arrival and dispersal of invasive species in their own local areas. That information is delivered into a statewide mapping database and to those who can do something about it. The premise is simple. The more trained eyes watching for invasive species, the better our chances of lessening or avoiding damage to our native landscape.

  • Hello Zebra Mussels, Goodbye Texas Lakes

    • TexasInvasives.org.

    • Zebra mussels are a small, destructive invasive species that can spread across Texas by hitching a ride on boats and trailers. Zebra mussels can cause tremendous environmental and economic damage - hurting aquatic life, damaging your boat, hindering water recreation and even threatening your water supply. In the state's ongoing effort to combat the spread of invasive zebra mussels, new rules effective July 1, 2014 require that all boats operating on public fresh water anywhere in Texas be drained after use.

  • Spread the Word

    • TexasInvasives.org.

    • Tell your friends and family about invasive species! Share videos, brochures, photos and other materials. Texas is a big state, and we can't get the word out to everyone without your help. You can either fill out the form to order them, or you can download versions from this website.

State Specific Threats

Selected Resources

The section below contains highly relevant resources for this location, organized by source.

Partnership
State and Local Government
Academic
Professional