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Tamarisk Eradication Threatens SW Willow Flycatcher

Photo via www.en.wikipedia.org

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kunm/local-kunm-985159.mp3

Government agencies, scientists and environmentalists are entangled in a predicament more complex than a thicket of tamarisk. It all started in the mid-1800s when a pink flowering shrub was brought to the United States to control erosion. The tamarisk seedlings dug their roots in deep and flourished along the banks of rivers in the west. For the past few decades land managers have been trying to eradicate the non native plant, most recently using another non native species - a leaf beetle. That's where things get complicated. From the Fronteras Changing America Desk, Laurel Morales breaks it down.