Shenandoah National Park boasts incredible biological diversity, with a rich array of native plants and animals that call our park home. Intact, diverse native habitats are our park’s best buffer against the effects of climate change.
Invasive Insect Control
The park is under serious threat from invasive insects. The emerald ash borer (EAB) and hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) threaten to kill over a million trees in the park in the next 10-15 years.
The goal of this project is to preserve a portion of the park’s eastern hemlocks for future restoration and to retain some ash trees for visitor enjoyment, reduce threats to visitors from hazard tree formation, and to preserve a portion of both trees until host-specific biological controls become available. Since 2018, approximately 5000 hemlocks and 180 ash trees have been treated. Learn more below.
Exotic Plants Volunteer Coordinator
This project supports a term employee to train and field-supervise volunteers involved in the SHEN invasive plant management and restoration program. You can learn more about the last few years of this project below.
Invasive Plant Early Detection & Rapid Response
Starting in 2021, this project will provide support for surveillance for new or uncommon invasive plants (early detection) and removal of new and documented occurrences of these species before they become widespread (rapid response). Learn more below.