Southeast Regional AIS Conference

The meeting will be held on April 14-15, 2026 at the Tides Folly Beach Hotel (1 Center Street, Folly Beach, SC 29439).

[All times stated in the agenda are in Eastern Daylight Time.* Indicates virtual presentation]

Tuesday April 14^th 2026

8:30 Welcome & Opening Remarks – Matt Phillips, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FL FWCC), Panel Chair.

8:40 Meeting Information – Michael Kendrick, SC Department of Natural Resources

8:50 Introductions – All.

9:00 The SC Aquatic Nuisance Plants Program at the Department of Environmental Services. – Julie Holling, SC Department of Environmental Services (SC DES).

9:20 Overview of aquatic invasive plants in South Carolina. – Keith Bradley, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

9:40 Aquatic invasive plant management activities on the Santee Cooper Lakes. – Chad Holbrook, Santee Cooper (a.k.a. South Carolina Public Service Authority).

10:00 BREAK

10:20 Research highlights from USFWS State and Interstate Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan (SIANSMP) funding to the SCDNR Marine Resources Research Institute: FY2014 to the present day. – Peter Kingsley-Smith, SCDNR – 20 minutes

10:40 Research highlights from USFWS State and Interstate Aquatic Nuisance Species Management Plan (SIANSMP) funding to the SCDNR Marine Resources Research Institute: FY2014 to the present day. – Peter Kingsley-Smith, SCDNR – 20 minutes

10:40 Impacts of Alabama bass invading South Atlantic Slope waterways. – Mark Scott, SCDNR.

11:00 Impacts of flathead catfish established in South Atlantic Slope Waterways. – Kevin Kubach, SCDNR.

11:20 Trophic impacts of invasive blue catfish in the Albemarle Sound, NC. * – Jim Morley, East Carolina University (ECU)

11:40 LUNCH (on your own)

1:20 Tracking an invasion: How the distribution and abundance of lionfish (Pterois spp.) have changed along the U.S. Atlantic coast. – Margaret Walker Finch, SCDNR.

1:40 Invasive eel swimbladder nematode, Anguillicola crassus research. – Jordan Parish, SCDNR.

1:40 White spot syndrome virus; pathways for invasion. – Daniel Sasson, SCDNR.

2:00 Investigating the geographic distribution of the blue land crab, Cardisoma guanhumi, by leveraging citizen science. – Daniel Sasson, SCDNR.

2:20 Using community ecology, genetics, and experimental trials to understand the potential impacts of non-native crayfish in South Carolina. – Michael Kendrick, SCDNR.

2:40 Caribbean creeping crabs: Implications of the continued spread of the green porcelain crab, Petrolisthes armatus up the southeast US coast. – April Blakeslee, ECU.

3:00 BREAK

3:20 Patterns of native and non-native host-symbiont associations in crayfish of South Carolina, USA – Greg Rothman, SCDNR.

3:40 Quantifying occupancy of non-native aquatic species in South Carolina’s coastal plain using eDNA and electrofishing. – Catherine Masatani, Clemson University.

4:00 Seasonal variation in thermal refugia use and angler participation in removal efforts of suckermouth armored catfish in San Felipe Creek, Val Verde County, Texas. *– Matthew Troia, University of Texas – San Antonio.

4:20 The genetic legacy of a global marine invader; the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas. – Erik Sotka, College of Charleston.

4:40 Adjourn for the day

Wednesday April 15^th 2026

8:30 Opening Remarks – Matt Phillips, FL FWCC.

8:40 Pulsing corals in Puerto Rico: The puzzle. – Nilda Jimenez-Marrero, Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources.

9:00 Update on New ANS Introductions. – Wesley Daniel, US Geological Survey (USGS).

9:20 USGS Aquatic Disease and Pathogen Database Update. – Wesley Daniel, USGS.

9:40 BREAK

10:15 State Reports / Members Forum.

11:40 Other Business – Matt Phillips, FL FWCC / Jim Page, GADNR.

• Next Meeting (Fall 2026)

12:15 Open Discussion.

ADJOURN