Black swallow-wort (Vincetoxicum nigrum) is an agricultural and ecological invasive pest that has established itself across New England and parts of eastern Canada. Over the course of this summer the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry investigated the effectiveness of using Hypena opulenta as a biological control for Black swallow-wort. This investigation involved going to previous release sites and searching for evidence of established Hypena opulenta populations. The other part of this investigation was a controlled release of Hypena opulenta and recording how effective the release was at controlling Black swallow-wort.

Michael Galli

earned a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Environmental Sciences from the University of Maine, Orono. He has been working under Hillary Peterson at DACF over the summer collecting data on the Black swallow-wort biocontrol project. Michael began his entomology career collecting and identifying mosquitoes and ticks under the direction of Dr. Allison Gardner and Elissa Ballman at the University of Maine.