File:Coast watch (1979) (20039758623).jpg

English:
Top: Betsy and Bill Brabson pull up a beach vitex seedling root that measures six feet long. Bottom: Beach vitex sprouts from the ground in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina

Title: Coast watch
Identifier: coastwatch00uncs_19 (find matches)
Year: 1979 (1970s)
Authors: UNC Sea Grant College Program
Subjects: Marine resources; Oceanography; Coastal zone management; Coastal ecology
Publisher: (Raleigh, N. C. : UNC Sea Grant College Program)
Contributing Library: State Library of North Carolina
Digitizing Sponsor: North Carolina Digital Heritage Center

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'o, NATURALIST'S NOTEBOOK Big Red Flag Brabson first saw beach vitex five years ago, while walking a familiar stretch of beach between Georgetown and Pawley's Island as a volunteer for the South Carolina United Turtle Enthusiasts (SCUTE). Her reaction was typical. "I thought it was pretty," Brabson says, describing how the plant's round, grayish- green leaves and bright purple flowers contrasted with the surrounding vegetation — mostly tall, wispy sea oats. She noted a pink beach house nearby, and kept an eye on the unusual plant for the rest of nesting season. "It grew and grew until it covered the dunes, and I noticed there were no sea oats growing anymore," she recalls. "The big red flag went up in 2003 when we did the Beach Sweep," she says, referring to the annual one-day litter cleanup of South Carolina's beaches and waterways, sponsored by South Carolina Sea Grant. That day, Brabson spotted thousands of beach vitex seedlings near the pink house. One of the most troubling characteristics of beach vitex is its prolific seed production — it can generate as many as 3,300 viable seeds per square meter, says Gresham. "On a windy day, you can watch them (the seeds) blow by you on the beach," says Nash, who is also a coastal management specialist for NC Cooperative Extension. After the Big Sweep, Brabson called Randy Westbrooks of the U.S. Geological Survey. Westbrook organized a symposium for personnel from state and federal agencies, private citizens and representatives from non- profit organizations to address beach vitex. The event resulted in the formation of the South Carolina Beach Vitex Task Force, made possible by a five-year grant from the National Off 'c,fi '*e c Fish ^ Wildlife The group ^h^ ^e^ was renamed the Carolinas Beach Vitex Task Force in 2005 when North Carolina officials joined the effort. Neighborhood Watch The task force encourages citizen involvement, says Brabson. The group often enlists the help of volunteer organizations that routinely walk beaches documenting sea turtle or shorebird nests. If someone sees beach vitex, Brabson recommends recording nearby streets or landmarks and visiting www.beachvitex.org to submit a report. A task force member will visit the reported area, confirm the identification and help determine appropriate eradication measures. "We ask people not to pull anything up," Brabson says. "Beach vitex needs to be positively identified first because we have so many native plants on the beach that it could be confused with." Last summer, the task force received an overwhelming number of beach vitex sightings, she adds. They expect a similar influx this year, as the task force will distribute a pocket-sized, waterproof beach vitex identification card. "The identification cards will be in the hands of an informed group of beach combers and turtle watchers who can help track the spread of beach vitex," says Barbara Doll, a North Carolina Sea Grant extension specialist. Doll, who works on invasive species projects, helped the task force develop the card. 'Time and time again, the general public has proved to be the most effective early warning network for the spread of invasive species," she says. Nationwide, citizens have used similar identification cards to help document other nuisance species, such as zebra mussels, purple loosestrife and spiny water fleas. "Citizen involvement will be a key component in documenting, and hopefully controlling, further beach vitex invasion," Doll says. Eradication Efforts As citizens and task force members locate and document beach vitex, researchers are looking at ways to eradicate the
Text Appearing After Image:
4?* plant once it's found. Simply tearing beach TOP: Betsy and Bill Brabson pull up a beach vitex seedling root that measures six-feet long. BOTTOM: Beach vitex sprouts from the ground in Atlantic Beach, N.C. OPPOSITE, TOP TO BOTTOM: A beach vitex stem is ait to a stump and treated with glvphosate herbicide. The litter layer is loaded with fruit from previous years. • As part of the hack-and-squirt treatment, a beach vitex stem is wounded with a machete and painted with an imazap\r herbicide, marked with a pwple dye. • A steni of beach vitex is treated with basal paint, an herbicide mixed with light oil that seeps into the plant's tissue. 28 Coastwatch I Spring 2006 I www.ncseagrant.org

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