Beetles Released to Combat Invasive Purple Loosestrife Plants
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Todd Jenson inspects the netting that has surrounded the potted plant for the last month for larvae and adult beetles after placing the pot next to "wild" purple loosestrife plants on the southwest shore of Lake Montesian, Monticello.
On Lake Montesian in Monticello, a very pretty but aggressive invasive wetland plant, called Purple Loosestrife has just had a natural enemy released into it. The enemy is an insect, Galerucella, or cella for short, that has an exclusive fondness for the Purple Loosestrife plant. The WI DNR and University of Wisconsin-Extension have done careful research and proven that these insects are not a threat to other plants. They have been using these insects for over 20 years in Wisconsin to reduce the purple loosestrife's impact on wetlands.
The life cycle of the beetle is that the adult eme...
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