Procedures and Policies for Milfoil

Genetic Identification Submissions

The Molecular Ecology Laboratory at GVSU’s Annis Water Resources Institute offers genetic identification services for watermilfoils. Please download the following forms and follow their instructions:

1.      Intent to submit samples [download form]

2.      Chain of Custody Record  [download form]

3.      Collection and Shipping Protocol [download form]

Procedures & Timeline

1)      Fill out “intent to submit samples”.  Please note that charges are applied per plant.  For example, if you send five plants from a single site, you will be charged for five plants (i.e., a 'sample' is a plant, not a set of plants from a site).  Please also note that you must notify us of the intent to submit samples prior to sending them.  We are very busy in the summer and cannot always process plants if we aren’t aware they are coming.

2)      Dustin will prepare an estimate and return within 1-3 business days.

3)      Ship plants according to the ‘Collection and shipping protocol’, include the ‘chain of custody record’ with them.

4)      You can expect identifications within 2-4 weeks.  We can sometimes expedite sample processing, but doing so may incur an additional fee in the estimate.

5)      Billing will typically take place at the end of the summer or early Fall when things settle down for us in the laboratory!  If you require special billing instructions, please indicate on the “Intent to submit samples” form.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact:

Dustin Wcisel

616-331-3990

wciseldu@gvsu.edu

Ryan Thum

616-331-3989

thumr@gvsu.edu