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Which terrestrial terror is the most destructive Great Lakes invasive species? You have a few more days to figure it out.
Please turn in your brackets, found here, by Monday. We’ll declare the Round 1 winners and have readers and scientists discuss the “land brawls” on Tuesday.
Will the emerald ash borer defeat the sirex woodwasp? What about the giant hogweed versus the feral swine? Good luck picking your favorite Great Lakes invasive losers!

Attacks on wetlands, phosphorus controls and even recycling are on Wisconsin’s agenda. And that has region-wide implications.

Recent battles with invasive species in the Great Lakes have prompted a call to update a 1900 federal law that governs importation of non-native plants and animals.

Editor’s note: Great Lakes SmackDown Terrestrial Terror is an ongoing Great Lakes Echo series. Brackets can be filled out until Friday, March 18. Find more information here.
By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
The heavyweights and wildcards take to the ring in the final land brawls of round one of the Great Lakes SmackDown Terrestrial Terror.
FERAL SWINE vs. GIANT HOGWEED
Weighing up to 440 pounds, the feral swine is an aggressive, athletic and voracious competitor. Hogging up the mammal category, “The Beast,” damages crops and carries a plethora of diseases.  Can another type …

Editor’s note: Great Lakes SmackDown Terrestrial Terror is an ongoing Great Lakes Echo series. Brackets can be filled out until Friday, March 18. Find more information here.
By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
It’s time for the plants and plant-killing exotics to take root in the SmackDown.
PURPLE LOOSESTRIFE vs. GARLIC MUSTARD
The purple loosetrife may be strikingly beautiful but watch out. This so called “Purple Plague” invades, out-competes and destroys. Standing up to 8-feet tall this beauty likes to socialize in bunches of plants that choke out native plants and wildlife. And …

Steve Hamilton is a Michigan State University professor of zoology based at Kellogg Biological Station, and president of the Kalamazoo River Watershed Council.

He became deeply involved in cleaning up oil that spilled last July in wetlands near Marshall, MI, and he described the experience at a recent seminar.

Editor’s note: Great Lakes SmackDown Terrestrial Terror is an ongoing Great Lakes Echo series. Brackets can be filled out until Friday, March 18. Find more information here.
By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
They stink, they sting and bore holes – it’s time for the insects to fight the battle of the bug.
EMERALD ASH BORER vs. SIREX WOODWASP
First to square-off, all the way from Asia, is the Emerald Ash Borer, or “The Green Menace.” This shiny plated insect is a professional ash tree killer. It bores through the bark, messing up the …

The Detroit River shoreline was hardened with concrete and steel to accommodate the loads of freight shipped along its banks for manufacturing.
Engineers are now softening that edge to accommodate river wildlife and Detroiters.

By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
Welcome to the Great Lakes SmackDown! Terrestrial Terror
Which terrestrial invasive species is the most ecologically destructive to the Great Lakes region? We want you to tell us. We’ll follow the NCAA tournament and pit 16 of the most formidable terrestrial invasive species against each other in “land brawls.” We also threw in a few aquatic wildcard species.
We’ll ask biologists, resource managers, invasive species experts and Echo readers to weigh in on each battle. Fill out a bracket, vote in polls and make sure you discuss and …