Hydrilla, Hydrilla verticillata, is an aquatic plant species that is native to Eurasia and was believed to have been first introduced into the US in the 1960s. It is also known as Florida elodea, water thyme, water-thyme, and waterthyme.

Credit: Chris Evans, The University of Georgia, www.insectimages.org

Credit: Chris Evans, The University of Georgia, www.insectimages.org

This plant is present in several Georgia waterbodies around the state. Research has recently been done to investigate potential links between hydrilla infestations and oubreaks of an often fatal disease that can affect birds. Most recently, a link to hydrilla has been suspected in bald eagle deaths in the Southeastern US. This research has examined avian vacuolar myelinopathy (or AVM) and eagle deaths in South Carolina-Georgia reservoirs.