A 20-year synthesis to the Lymantria dispar slow the spread program
| Authors: | Tom Coleman, Christopher J. Foelker, Travis Perkins |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Type: | Proceedings - Paper |
| Station: | Northern Research Station |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-GTR-212-chapter3 |
| Source: | In: Coleman, T.W.; Liebhold, A.M., eds. Slow the spread: a 20-year reflection on the national Lymantria dispar integrated pest management program. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-212. Madison, WI: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station: 45–69. |
Abstract
For 20 years, the National Slow the Spread (STS) Program has successfully slowed the rate of spread of the non-native spongy moth, Lymantria dispar L. (Lepidoptera: Erebidae, formerly known as the "gypsy moth"), to a mean rate of 2.6 km/yr, an 87 percent reduction from its historical rate of spread and surpassing the program’s goal of a 60 percent reduction. Because the program has been so successful and the location of the population front has remained in the same general area, state partners have remained fairly consistent during the course of the program. Much of the program focuses on the use of pheromone-baited traps to locate isolated populations along the invasion front, to measure spread, and to adjust program boundaries annually. From 2000 to 2021, a total of >9 million male moths were captured. Annually, a mean of 730 new, low-density, isolated L. dispar populations (i.e., "potential problem areas") were detected in the transition area, but only 13 percent were recommended for treatment. The STS Program has treated >3.76 million hectares with mating disruption and larvicides. Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin represent the states with the greatest treatments. Mating disruption treatments accounted for 88 percent of the total treatment hectares. Treatment blocks intersected with federal lands and urban areas on 10 and 9 percent of the total hectares, respectively.