Park ranger sparks concern after sharing photos of huge project online: 'I've always felt like I'm fighting a war'

One Michigan park ranger declared war against the invasive buckthorn that overtook the habitat of the eastern massasauga rattlesnake at the Dickerson Lake Fen in Michigan's Seven Lakes State Park.

The buckthorn removal should help restore the habitat of the massasauga rattlesnake, which has been labeled as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act as of 2016.

The park ranger shared photos of the massive removal to the r/invasivespecies subreddit.

"This is a large stand of [buckthorn] that is on fen that is habitat for [massasauga rattlesnake] " the OP described. "The buckthorn is stumped and a herbicide is applied."

The photos show a dedicated effort at clearing the barren buckthorn shrubs in the middle of winter.

Many commenters applauded the park ranger's effort.

"I don't know about anyone else, but I've always felt like I'm fighting a war on invasives," one commenter wrote. "Feels that much more rewarding when I can say I've conquered the different pieces of the property."

Others were curious about how buckthorn interfered with the rattlesnake's habitat.

The park ranger described buckthorn as an invasive species that grows aggressively and densely across the land. Buckthorn outcompetes native shrubs and grasses for water and soil nutrients, displacing native shrubs and grasses where the rattlesnake prefers to hide.

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According to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' buckthorn fact sheet, the invasive species also grows up to 20 feet high, or the height of a small tree, which effectively blocks out sunlight for other understory plants. The lack of sunlight also disrupts the rattlesnake's thermoregulation processes, which affects the snake's ability to move and hunt for food.

Invasive species don't just affect forest lands. They can show up in your backyard, too.

Homeowners who have had to eliminate invasive species from their lawns know how tedious the process can be, especially if they are aggressively persistent. You have to remove the roots thoroughly, or they will spring back to life given the chance.

Installing a native plant lawn could be a proactive measure to fight invasive species from overtaking your yard while encouraging a healthy ecosystem for important pollinators. Native plants, and lawn replacement options like clover and buffalo grass, are more climate-resilient, slow-growing, and require less water to maintain. These options, even as a partial lawn replacement, could also save you time and money on lawn maintenance, as well as water bills.

Native lawns also create healthier environments for local pollinators, which ultimately protects our food supply.

Eliminating the buckthorn and restoring the fen's native plants gives the rattlesnake population a safe space to recuperate, restoring balance to the local ecosystem.

"Love seeing this kind of work, keep it up OP!" one commenter said.

"This is what I do on a daily basis for work love to see others doing it too," another added.

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