By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason

Welcome to the Great Lakes SmackDown! Terrestrial Terror

Which terrestrial invasive species is the most ecologically destructive to the Great Lakes region? We want you to tell us. We’ll follow the NCAA tournament and pit 16 of the most formidable terrestrial invasive species against each other in “land brawls.” We also threw in a few aquatic wildcard species.

We’ll ask biologists, resource managers, invasive species experts and Echo readers to weigh in on each battle. Fill out a bracket, vote in polls and make sure you discuss and root for your favorite (or most disliked) contender.

They may be exotic losers but that doesn’t mean they can’t be winners in the SmackDown!

Let’s brawl!

Week of March 1

March 1 — Brackets and fighter profiles made available.

Download everything you need here:

• Bracket (writable)
• Fighter profiles (to help make your choices read about the contenders in this document)

Week of March 14 – March 18

March 14 — Official Introduction

March 14 — Round 1: Bird Battles

March 15 — Round 1: Insect wars

March 16 — Round 1: Plant peril

March 17 — Round 1: Miscellaneous mayhem

Week of March 21 – March 25

March 22 — Round 1, Part 1: Results of bird battles and insect wars

March 23 — Round 1, Part 2: Results of plant peril and misc. mayhem

March 24 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2: Mute swan vs. emerald ash borer

March 24 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2: European starling vs. gypsy moth

March 25 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2: Garlic mustard vs. feral swine

March 25 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2: Beech scale vs. mystery snails

Week of March 28 — April 1

March 29 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2 results: Garlic mustard vs. feral swine

March 29 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2 results: Beech scale vs. mystery snails

March 30 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2 results: European starling vs. gypsy moth

March 30 — Terrestrial Terror Round 2 results: Mute swan vs. emerald ash borer

Week of April 4  — April 8

April 5 — Terrestrial Terror Final Four results: European starling vs. beech scale

April 5 — Terrestrial Terror Final Four results: Emerald ash borer vs. Feral Swine

April 6 — Terrestrial Terror: Final land brawl

Week of April 11 — April 14

April 14 — VIDEO: Great Lakes SmackDown! Terrestrial Terror Finale