Southern forest insects
| Authors: | Donald A. Duerr, Robert J. Rabaglia, Bradley P. Onken |
| Year: | 2012 |
| Type: | Book Chapter |
| Station: | Washington Office |
| Source: | Bechtold, William A.; Bohne, Michael J.; Conkling, Barbara L.; Friedman, Dana L.; Tkacz, Borys M., eds. 2012. A synthesis of evaluation monitoring projects by the forest health monitoring program (1998–2007). Gen. Tech. Rep. SRS-159. Asheville, NC: U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Southern Research Station. 140 p. |
Abstract
Between 1998 and 2008, five Evaluation Monitoring ( EM) projects under the national Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) Program of the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, studied insects of the Southern United States. The projects reflected expanded survey efforts related to various nonnative bark and ambrosia beetles. Two of the projects conducted preliminary surveys of the Southeast to determine the occurrence of exotic ambrosia beetles, and two projects addressed mortality surveys and survey methodology for the nonnative redbay ambrosia beetle and associated laurel wilt fungus. The fifth project investigated risk of initial hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) infestations to hemlock stands in the Southern Appalachian Mountains region. The emphases of these projects reflect the growing impacts that nonnative insects are having on southern forested ecosystems. The first four projects discussed increased our knowledge of the extent and distribution of nonnative bark/ambrosia beetles, improved detection methods, helped to focus current and future survey efforts, and formed the basis for impact studies. The last project focused on identifying areas at risk of initial HWA infestations, and the site variables that are important in modeling which areas may be at greatest risk.