Celebrate National Invasive Species Awareness Week!

National Invasive Species Awareness Week 2025 will take place during the last week of February:
February 24 - 28

a group of people pose for a photo outdoors with a sign that says "weed wrangle"
Volunteers participate in a "weed wrangle" to remove invasive species.

NPS Photo

National Invasive Species Awareness Week (NISAW) is an annual multi-agency event to raise awareness about invasive species. This annual event is typically in the last week of February. Invasive species are a serious challenge for our parks and connected ecosystems. Join the celebration by learning more about what invasive species are, how they spread, and what we all can do to help prevent them.

Use the hashtag #NISAW to join the conversation on social media!


Join a Webinar

The North American Invasive Species Management Association (NAISMA) hosts educational webinars on priority invasive species issues the week of NISAW. Other organizations may host webinars also. Speakers and topics for NISAW 2025 are listed below:

  • US Geological Survey
  • US Army Corps of Engineers
  • Environmental Protection Agency
  • OH-SMART/One Health
  • VIDA Intergovernmental Response Framework
  • USDA APHIS

Check the NISAW 2025 events page for updates and details.


What are Invasive Species?

Invasive Species
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      Native species, non-native species, invasive species, pests....what’s the difference? Don’t worry, we break it down for you in this video.

      Invasive Species Basics



      Invasive Species Prevention


      The ideal way to address invasive species is to keep them from establishing in a new area in the first place—to stop the spread. There are a variety of simple sterps a visitor can take to ensure that they are not transporting invasive species into, around, or out of a park. Find out how you can help stop the spread before and after you recreate and even by taking action at home.

      Stop the Spread!

      • three people clean an inflatable raft
        What You Can Do

        Just a few steps can prevent the spread of invasive species.

      • a group of people stand in a greenhouse listening to a person talk
        Conservation at Home

        Invasive species are not just a problem in national parks — they're a problem worldwide. Find out how you can help stop the spread at home.

      I Didn't Know That! Series

      What We Do

      Showing results 1-10 of 239

        • Locations: Curecanti National Recreation Area
        • Offices: Inventory and Monitoring Division, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Directorate, Northern Colorado Plateau Inventory & Monitoring Network
        Oxeye daisies partially along the shoreline of Blue Mesa Reservoir in Curecanti NRA.

        Invasive exotic plants are one of the most significant threats to natural resources in the national parks today. To provide early warning of weed invasions, the Northern Colorado Plateau Network monitors target plants in park areas where they are likely to first establish: along roads, trails, and waterways. Find out what we've learned at Curecanti National Recreation Area.

      • Cuyahoga Valley National Park

        Restoring Butterfly Habitat at Terra Vista

        • Locations: Cuyahoga Valley National Park
        Yellow butterfly with a lime green eye hangs on a stalk with many small, white flowers.

        Citizen scientists monitoring butterflies at the Terra Vista Natural Study Area provide important data for the habitat restoration team.

      • Cuyahoga Valley National Park

        Battling Invasive Plants in Cuyahoga Valley

        • Locations: Cuyahoga Valley National Park
        Two boys reach gloved hands into dense vegetation and rip out handfuls of tall, green stalks.

        Throughout the growing season, volunteers and staff improve park habitats by removing invasive plants. Cut, pull, dig, or spray—and repeat! Learn which ones are the biggest problem and how you can help.

        • Locations: War In The Pacific National Historical Park
        • Offices: Inventory and Monitoring Division, Pacific Island Inventory & Monitoring Network
        A tan snail on a branch next to a finger. The snail is smaller than the person

        War in the Pacific National Historical Park is working to protect Guam’s biodiversity by managing invasive species like brown tree snakes and little fire ants while safeguarding native wildlife, including the endangered Guam tree snail. A recent study assessed the park’s Guam tree snail population, providing essential data to inform conservation efforts aimed at restoring the island’s fragile ecosystem.

        • Locations: Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Canyon National Park
        A meandering turquoise river surrounded by vegetation, sand, and high red rock cliffs

        Vegetation experiments are helping restore Colorado River sites in Grand Canyon and Glen Canyon.

      • Four students outside holding up sketches of outdoor subjects.

        A citizen science project tests whether a small wasp can restore native habitat. It also shows the benefits of firsthand experience for high school students.

        • Locations: Dinosaur National Monument
        • Offices: Inventory and Monitoring Division, Northern Colorado Plateau Inventory & Monitoring Network
        A researcher is taking notes walking along a transect line in a vegetation stand.

        The Inventory and Monitoring Division funded a project to study wetland habitats in Dinosaur National Monument, exploring their locations, conditions, and ecological roles. Data from this project will inform park management decisions and future updates to water rights.

        • Locations: Cuyahoga Valley National Park
        • Offices: Heartland Inventory & Monitoring Network, Inventory and Monitoring Division
        A yellow lady

        At Cuyahoga Valley National Park (NP), a rare plant inventory funded by the Inventory & Monitoring Division is helping park managers understand and protect the park’s hidden ecological gems. Researchers identified 98 rare plant species during this inventory.

        • Locations: Acadia National Park, Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, Saguaro National Park
        • Offices: Desert Research Learning Center, Schoodic Education and Research Center
        People on the shore smiling at the camera

        National park visitors are using mobile-friendly platforms like iNaturalist to collect valuable data on biodiversity. Their observations help park managers monitor and respond to emerging threats, from stinknet in Saguaro National Park to the hemlock woolly adelgid in Acadia.

      • a ranger power washes a boat on a trailer

        While boating, floating, and fishing are wonderful ways to spend the afternoon, people can unknowingly introduce harmful aquatic hitchhikers that can hide in and on boats and equipment. But there’s a simple way to prevent the spread... clean, drain, dry.

      Last updated: January 6, 2025

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