** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** INVASIVE SPECIES ARE RESHAPING LANDSCAPES GLOBALLY, CAUSING HARM TO AGRICULTURAL AND ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS, AND GENERATING BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN ECONOMIC LOSSES ANNUALLY. AMONG THE MANY HABITATS THREATENED BY INVASIVE SPECIES, THE UNTILLED RANGELANDS OF THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS HAVE BEEN SEVERELY IMPACTED. THESE HABITATS CONTRIBUTE SUBSTANTIALLY TO AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION AND ALSO CONTRIBUTE VALUABLE ECOSYSTEM SERVICES ESSENTIAL FOR HEALTHY SOIL AND CLEAN WATER. LEAFY SPURGE IS A MAJOR WEED OF RANGELANDS THAT CAUSE ENORMOUS ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL LOSSES. IT INFESTS ALMOST 2 MILLION HECTARES THAT RESULTS IN OVER $130 MILLION DOLLARS ANNUALLY.THE GOAL OF OUR PROJECT IS TO LEVERAGE HIGH RESOLUTION SATELLITE IMAGERY AND DEEP LEARNING MODELS TO DETECT LEAFY SPURGE POPULATIONS, TRACK POPULATION DYNAMICS OVER THE LAST DECADE, AND ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL VARIATION AND BIOCONTROL EFFORTS ON SPATIAL PATTERNS OF INVASION. THIS RESEARCH WILL ALLOW FOR COST-EFFECTIVE, RAPID TRACKINGOF THE SPREAD AND IMPACT OF THIS NOXIOUS WEED. OUR PROJECT WILL ALSO RESHAPE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE ECOLOGICAL AND MANAGEMENT FACTORS THAT CONTROL INVASION DYNAMICS OVER LARGE GEOGRAPHIC SCALES. WE WILL USE EXTENSIVE DATASETS OF OCCURRENCES AND MANAGEMENT PRACTICES ALREADY COLLECTED BY MULTIPLE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES OVER THE LAST DECADE ACROSS THE NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS. THIS WORK HAS THE ABILITY TO AID LAND MANAGEMENT EFFORTS WITH NEAR REAL-TIME ESTIMATES OF INVASION AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LIKELY SUCCESS OF BIOCONTROL AS A MANAGEMENT TOOL. FURTHER, DEMONSTRATING THE USE OF REMOTE SENSING AND DEEP LEARNING IN RANGELAND MANAGEMENT WILL ALLOW FOR MORE TARGETED AND ACCURATE MANAGEMENT OF LEAFY SPURGE AND EVENTUALLY OTHER NOXIOUS INVASIVE WEEDS