Treesearch

Over 200 years ago, Ailanthus altissima (tree-of-heaven) was introduced to the United States for use as an ornamental. The tree was recognized for its ability to tolerate various soil types and climates, rapid growth, high reproductive capacity, and lack of apparent insect pests or diseases. Initially, Ailanthus represented a reliable tree to plant in cities and revegetate disturbed areas. Today, however, the species is a common invader in many forests across the nation.

Forest landscape simulation models (FLM) have been extensively used for projecting ecosystem dynamics and carbon fluxes. However, more guidance and methods for formal calibration and corroboration of FLMs are needed to ensure higher fidelity results from these models. We developed a novel systematic methodology for calibrating and corroborating a FLM at the grid-cell scale using empirical estimates from the national forest inventory in the United States (US) which uses an equal probability sample design. We illustrate our approach by using the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data from...

The behaviour of wildland fires and the dispersion of smoke from those fires can be strongly influenced by atmospheric turbulent flow. The science to support that assertion has developed and evolved over the past 100+ years, with contributions from laboratory and field observations, as well as modelling experiments. This paper provides a synthesis of the key laboratory- and field- based observational studies focused on wildland fire and atmospheric turbulence connections that have been conducted from the early 1900s through 2021. Included in the synthesis are reports of anecdotal turbulence...

The spotted lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula (White) (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae), is an invasive species of planthopper that was introduced to North America and is a threat to multiple industries. Nymphs and egg masses were collected to assess each instar’s rate of development at a constant temperature of 25°C on the following hosts: Ailanthus altissima (Miller) (Sapindales: Simaroubaceae), Vitis labrusca (L.) (Vitales: Vitaceae), Salix babylonica (L.) (Malpighiales: Salicaceae), Acer rubrum (L.) (Sapindales: Sapindaceae), Celastrus orbiculata (Thunberg) (Celastrales: Celastraceae), Ocimum...

Street-facing trees have been cited as providing a vast range of environmental benefits and also a contributing factor to community livability and quality of life. One measure of well-being that speaks directly to the livability of a city is residential satisfaction, which is represented by the social and physical environments of the particular places in which people live. Resident satisfaction can also demonstrate the degree of "fit" between one's ideal vision of a neighborhood and the actual, existing circumstances. Dimensions of resident satisfaction are less commonly studied as a...

Attributes of property parcel owners are hypothesized to impact land management outcomes, because different types of owners are likely to have different capacities and motivations for land stewardship. We used emerging data resources to examine how owner type relates to the prevalence of overgrown vegetation in Toledo, Ohio, and Trenton, New Jersey, USA. Overgrown vegetation was characterized at the property parcel scale using data from comprehensive parcel surveys in each city, and owner attributes were categorized using local property tax databases. We categorized owners into types...

The emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), a phloem-boring beetle native to Asia, was first discovered in 2002 in the USA and Canada, causing widespread mortality of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.). A classical biological control program against EAB was implemented with the first regulatory approvals for environmental releases of three hymenopteran parasitoids from China in 2007: Tetrastichus planipennisi (Eulophidae), Spathius agrili (Braconidae), and Oobius agrili (Encyrtidae), and a fourth parasitoid, Spathius galinae (Braconidae) from the Russian Far East in...

Spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula White) is an invasive planthopper that was introduced to the United States from Asia and readily spreads via human aided means. Three geographically separated populations in the United States (NJ, PA, and WV) were collected and used to assess the effects of fluctuating thermal regimes that included temperatures above or below the upper (Tmax) and lower (Tmin) developmental thresholds, respectively, on nymphal survival and development, and to determine if there was within- and among-population variation in hatch timing and temperature responses of...

We use a unique dataset of land parcels and forest cover, before and after subdivision development, to examine outcomes of Maryland's Forest Conservation Act (FCA). Focusing on the spatial configuration of homes and forests, we compare subdivisions created before and after FCA implementation in 1993. We found minimal impacts of FCA on forest outcomes we considered: houses were as likely to be built in forest before and after FCA, and forest metrics showed increasing fragmentation with development unchanged by FCA regulation. However, the FCA led to a greater proportion of forest located...

Given the high costs associated with fruit fly (Tephritidae) invasions, there is a need to better understand and predict the risks of future invasions. We assembled a global database of historical Tephritidae invasions with the objective to identify biological and socioeconomic drivers that explain invasions. We investigate the tendencies of certain species to invade and the characteristics of regions that make them more prone to invasions. Our database documented the occurrence (presence/ absence) and status (native/non-native) of individual Tephritidae species in each country in the...