Audubon Community Nature Center President Ruth Lundin will give an update on the progress at removing the invasive European water chestnut at the First Friday Lunch Bunch on Sept. 1. Pictured is Tiffany Donaldson, invasive species management assistant, who — along with other staff and many volunteers — worked this summer to clear Audubon’s waterways.

Ruth Lundin, Audubon Community Nature Center, will give a report this Friday as part of Audubon’s First Friday Lunch Bunch on the removal of the European water chestnut from the center’s waterways.

Efforts to remove the plant began in the fall 2012. Lundin will teach a bit about the plant, summarize the efforts taken to remove it, share lessons learned and progress to date.

European water chestnut is an invasive aquatic plant that was released inadvertently into waters of the Northeast in the late 1800s. It is slowly spreading throughout New York state, clogging waterways, lakes and ponds and altering aquatic habitats. The variety of water chestnut found at the Audubon is not the same as the product which can be purchased in cans at the supermarket. It is native to Europe, Asia and Africa. In its native habitat, the plant is kept in check by insect parasites. These insects are not present in North America. The plant colonizes areas of freshwater lakes and ponds and slow-moving streams and rivers where it forms dense mats of floating vegetation, causing problems for boaters and swimmers and negatively impacting aquatic ecosystem functioning.

Lundin joined the Audubon Community Nature Center as president in 1999. She has been the primary staff liaison to the crew that has worked to eliminate non-native, invasive water chestnut from the center’s property.

A bring-your-own brown bag lunch and conversation follows the program, with coffee and tea provided.

The fee for attending is $8 or $6 for Nature Center Members. Registration can be completed online on the programs page at auduboncnc.org. Walk-ins are also welcome.

Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown and Warren. For more information, call 569-2345 during business hours or visit the Programs page at auduboncnc.org.