Spruce beetles and forest ecosystems in south-central Alaska: A review of 30 years of research

From 1920 to 1989, approximately 847,000 ha of Alaska spruce (Picea spp.) forests were infested by spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis). From 1990 to 2000, an extensive outbreak of spruce beetles caused mortality of spruce across 1.19 million ha of forests in Alaska; approximately 40% more forest area than was infested the previous 70 years. This review presents some of the most important findings from a diversity of research and management projects from 1970 to 2004 to understand the biology, ecology, and control of this important forest insect, and the causes and effects of their outbreaks. We suggest that future research should examine the long-term effects of the spruce beetle outbreaks and climate variability on forest ecosystems in the region. Research into how different management actions facilitate or interrupt natural successional processes would be particularly useful.     

Recent infestation of forest stands by spruce beetles does not predict habitat use by little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) in southwestern Yukon, Canada

Insect outbreaks affect forest structure which may have significant effects on the habitat of other animals. Forest-dwelling insectivorous bats are likely affected by associated changes in the abundance of roost trees and insect prey, altered foraging and flying efficiency, and predation risk. We examined the short-term effects (3-13 years post-infestation) of an outbreak of spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) on the habitat use of little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) in the boreal forest of the southwestern Yukon, Canada. We measured bat activity, using Anabat II bat detectors, in 90 forested stands that had experienced from 0 to 90% tree mortality due to spruce beetles. We used generalized linear models to assess whether bat activity varied with tree mortality, season, tree density, canopy closure, or distance to the nearest lake or town. Bat activity did not vary significantly with tree mortality, season, or canopy closure, but decreased with increasing tree density. Bat activity was significantly greater in areas close to both the nearest lake and nearest town, and was low in areas that were far from either. Our results indicate that in the short-term, habitat use by little brown bats was not related to the severity of spruce beetle infestation, but suggest that in the long-term, bats may be positively affected by decreased tree density as beetle-killed trees fall down.     

Fire history of white and Lutz spruce forests on the Kenai Peninsula,Alaska, over the last two millennia as determined from soil charcoal

The presence of over 429,000 ha of forest with spruce (Picea spp.) recently killed by spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) on the Kenai Peninsula has raised the specter of catastrophic wildfire. Dendrochronological evidence indicated that spruce beetle outbreaks occurred on average every 50 years in these forests. We used 121 radiocarbon-dated soil charcoal samples collected from throw mounds of recently blown over trees to reconstruct the regional fire history for the last ca. 2500 years and found no relation between fire activity and past spruce beetle outbreaks. Soil charcoal data suggest that upland forests of white (Picea glauca) and Lutz (Picea x lutzii) spruce have not on average burned for 600 years (time-since-fire range 90 to ∼1500 years, at 22 sites) and that the mean fire interval was 400–600 years. It would thus appear that 10 or more spruce beetle outbreaks can occur for every cycle of fire in these forests. We caution, however, that a trend of warmer summers coupled with an increasing human population and associated sources of ignitions may create a greater fire risk in all fuel types than was present during the time period covered by our study. We suggest that forest management focus on creating fuel breaks between valued human infrastructure and all types of forest fuels, both green and dead.     

Spruce beetle outbreaks on the Kenai Peninsula,Alaska, and Kluane National Park and Reserve,Yukon Territory: Relationship to summer temperatures and regional differences in disturbance regimes

When spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) thin a forest canopy, surviving trees grow more rapidly for decades until the canopy closes and growth is suppressed through competition. We used measurements of tree rings to detect such growth releases and reconstruct the history of spruce beetle outbreaks at 23 mature spruce (Picea spp.) forests on and near the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska and four mature white spruce (Picea glauca) forests in Kluane National Park and Reserve, Yukon Territory. On the Kenai Peninsula, all stands showed evidence of 1–5 thinning events with thinning occurring across several stands during the 1810s, 1850s, 1870–1880s, 1910s, and 1970–1980s, which we interpreted as regional spruce beetle outbreaks. However, in the Kluane region we only found evidence of substantial thinning in one stand from 1934 to 1942 and thinning was only detected across stands during this same time period. Over the last 250 years, spruce beetle outbreaks therefore occurred commonly among spruce forests on the Kenai Peninsula, at a mean return interval of 52 years, and rarely among spruce forests in the Kluane region where cold winter temperatures and fire appear to more strongly regulate spruce beetle population size. The massive 1990s outbreaks witnessed in both regions appeared to be related to extremely high summer temperatures. Recent outbreaks on the Kenai Peninsula (1971–1996) were positively associated with the 5-year backwards running average of summer temperature. We suggest that warm temperature influences spruce beetle population size through a combination of increased overwinter survival, a doubling of the maturation rate from 2 years to 1 year, and regional drought-induced stress of mature host trees. However, this relationship decoupled after 1996, presumably because spruce beetles had killed most of the susceptible mature spruce in the region. Thus sufficient numbers of mature spruce are needed in order for warm summer temperatures to trigger outbreaks on a regional scale. Following the sequential and large outbreaks of the 1850s, 1870–1880s, and 1910s, spruce beetle outbreaks did not occur widely again until the 1970s. This suggests that it may take decades before spruce forests on the Kenai Peninsula mature following the 1990s outbreak and again become susceptible to another large spruce beetle outbreak. However, if the recent warming trend continues, endemic levels of spruce beetles will likely be high enough to perennially thin the forests as soon as the trees reach susceptible size.     

Vegetation change and forest regeneration on the Kenai Peninsula,Alaska following a spruce beetle outbreak, 1987–2000

Forests of the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska experienced widespread spruce (Picea spp.) mortality during a massive spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis) infestation over a 15-year period. In 1987, and again in 2000, the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station, Forest Inventory and Analysis Program conducted initial and remeasurement inventories of forest vegetation to assess the broad-scale impacts of this infestation. Analysis of vegetation composition was conducted with indirect gradient analysis using nonmetric multidimensional scaling to determine the overall pattern of vegetation change resulting from the infestation and to evaluate the effect of vegetation change on forest regeneration. For the latter we specifically assessed the impact of the grass bluejoint (Calamagrostis canadensis) on white spruce (Picea glauca) and paper birch (Betula papyrifera) regeneration. Changes in vegetation composition varied both in magnitude and direction among geographic regions of the Kenai Peninsula. Forests of the southern Kenai Lowland showed the most marked change in composition indicated by relatively large distances between 1987 and 2000 measurements in ordination space. Specific changes included high white spruce mortality (87% reduction in basal area of white spruce >12.7 cm diameter-at-breast height (dbh)) and increased cover of early successional species such as bluejoint and fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium). Forests of the Kenai Mountains showed a different directional change in composition characterized by moderate white spruce mortality (46% reduction) and increased cover of late-successional mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana). Forests of the Gulf Coast and northern Kenai Lowland had lower levels of spruce mortality (22% reduction of Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and 28% reduction of white spruce, respectively) and did not show consistent directional changes in vegetation composition. Bluejoint increased by ≥10% in cover on 12 of 33 vegetation plots on the southern Kenai Lowland but did not increase by these amounts on the 82 plots sampled elsewhere on the Kenai Peninsula. Across the Kenai Lowland, however, regeneration of white spruce and paper birch did not change in response to the outbreak or related increases in bluejoint cover from 1987 to 2000. Although some infested areas will be slow to reforest owing to few trees and no seedlings, we found no evidence of widespread reductions in regeneration following the massive spruce beetle infestation.     

Community perspectives on spruce beetle impacts on the Kenai Peninsula,Alaska

A recent outbreak of spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) in forests on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska was met with substantial variation in response among people and communities situated within this changing landscape. Interviews and mail surveys administered to residents in six Kenai Peninsula communities revealed differences in perception of biophysical, social, and economic impacts that resulted from changing forest conditions related to the spruce beetle outbreak. Together, the qualitative and quantitative data provided evidence of collective experience and community risk perception across Kenai Peninsula communities. Fire, falling trees, declining quality of watersheds and wildlife habitat, economic fluctuations, landscape change, and emotional loss were some of the issues faced. In some communities, increased timber harvesting brought short-term, positive economic change in the wake of the spruce beetle outbreak. In other communities, the loss of a living spruce (Picea spp.) forest profoundly affected quality of life, and led to community conflict, increased risk perception of future impacts, and economic challenges. Biophysical changes were keenly felt by many residents. Communities at different stages in the spruce beetle outbreak revealed temporal and spatial variations in perceived impacts. The diverse array of perceived impacts and risks from the spruce beetle outbreak in Kenai Peninsula communities presents both opportunities and obstacles for forest management in the context of changing forest conditions.     

Persisting bark beetle outbreak indicates the unsustainability of secondary Norway spruce forests: case study from Central Europe

? Context

Secondary Norway spruce forests in the Western Beskids are among the most damaged forests in Europe. Although spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus) has been recently causing large-scale damage to these forests, our understanding of I. typographus dynamics in this environment is inadequate for evaluating forest sustainability.

? Aim

This study aims to evaluate the patterns of damage caused by I. typographus to spruce forests with compromised ecological stability.

? Methods

Forest infestation by I. typographus was inferred from sanitary felling data collected from 1998 to 2004. Stand and site data were obtained from forest management plans. Spatial-dependence analysis, ordinary kriging and neural network-based regression modelling were used to investigate the patterns of infestation and the casual relationships in the studied ecosystem.

? Results

I. typographus long-distance dispersal substantially decreased with outbreak culmination. The spread of infestation was only weakly related to stand and site parameters. Infestations spread isotropically at the stand and patch level but directionally at the regional scale.

? Conclusions

The large-scale spread of infestation can be explained by the uniform age and species composition of the investigated forests and by the ability of populations to overwhelm suboptimal trees. The observations presented here suggest that secondary spruce forests in Europe may be unsustainable due to unprecedented bark beetle outbreaks, which can be further amplified by changing climate.     

Stand and landscape level effects of a major outbreak of spruce beetles on forest vegetation in the Copper River Basin,Alaska

From 1989 to 2003, a widespread outbreak of spruce beetles (Dendroctonus rufipennis) in the Copper River Basin, Alaska, infested over 275,000 ha of forests in the region. During 1997 and 1998, we measured forest vegetation structure and composition on one hundred and thirty-six 20-m × 20-m plots to assess both the immediate stand and landscape level effects of the spruce beetle infestation. A photo-interpreted vegetation and infestation map was produced using color-infrared aerial photography at a scale of 1:40,000. We used linear regression to quantify the effects of the outbreak on forest structure and composition. White spruce (Picea glauca) canopy cover and basal area of medium-to-large trees [≥15 cm diameter-at-breast height (1.3 m, dbh)] were reduced linearly as the number of trees attacked by spruce beetles increased. Black spruce (Picea mariana) and small diameter white spruce (<15 cm dbh) were infrequently attacked and killed by spruce beetles. This selective attack of mature white spruce reduced structural complexity of stands to earlier stages of succession and caused mixed tree species stands to lose their white spruce and become more homogeneous in overstory composition. Using the resulting regressions, we developed a transition matrix to describe changes in vegetation types under varying levels of spruce beetle infestations, and applied the model to the vegetation map. Prior to the outbreak, our study area was composed primarily of stands of mixed white and black spruce (29% of area) and pure white spruce (25%). However, the selective attack on white spruce caused many of these stands to transition to black spruce dominated stands (73% increase in area) or shrublands (26% increase in area). The post-infestation landscape was thereby composed of more even distributions of shrubland and white, black, and mixed spruce communities (17–22% of study area). Changes in the cover and composition of understory vegetation were less evident in this study. However, stands with the highest mortality due to spruce beetles had the lowest densities of white spruce seedlings suggesting a longer forest regeneration time without an increase in seedling germination, growth, or survival.     

Modelling the predisposition of Norway spruce to <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ips typographus</Emphasis> L. infestation by means of environmental factors in southern Finland

New measures for effective monitoring and controlling of bark beetle infestations are needed as a response to intensified outbreaks caused by the climate change. Various environmental factors affect tree health and susceptibility, as well as stand predisposition to bark beetles. European spruce bark beetle Ips typographus L. abundance and outbreak frequency in Finland has significantly increased during the last decade. The ability to identify sites under a high risk of infestation would facilitate adaptation to this new situation and help target limited forest health management resources. Accordingly, our goal was to investigate the importance of various stand, soil and topographic characteristics in the assessing predisposition of Norway spruce dominated urban forest in southern Finland to I. typographus infestations. Information on the environmental factors was assessed in the field in 2014 and derived from a digital elevation model. Ips typographus infestation intensity was classified into three infestation index classes based on tree-wise symptoms of resin flow, discoloration and defoliation. Cumulative logit link models were utilized for investigating stand-level infestation probability. The best explanatory factors were aspect, slope, site type and soil texture. Models with the highest cumulative probabilities for severe infestation were linked with eastern aspect, moderate steep slope and rich site type fertility (0.72) and eastern aspect, shallow soil and rich site type fertility (0.71). Higher soil C/N ratios with east aspect and rich site type fertility was associated with an increased risk of severe infestation in a third model. The lowest risk was associated with southern and southwestern aspects, fine soil texture, moderate site fertility and gentle slopes.     

Southern pine beetle regional outbreaks modeled on landscape, climate and infestation history

The southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis, SPB) is the major insect pest of pine species in the southeastern United States. It attains outbreak population levels sufficient to mass attack host pines across the landscape at scales ranging from a single forest stand to interstate epidemics. This county level analysis selected and examined the best climatic and landscape variables for predicting infestations at regional scales. The analysis showed that, for a given county, the most important factor in predicting outbreaks was that the county was classified as in outbreak status in the previous year. Other important factors included minimum winter temperature and the greatest difference between the average of daily minimums and a subsequent low temperature point, precipitation history either seasonally in the previous year or difference from average over the previous 2 years, the synchronizing effect of seasonal temperatures on beetle populations and the relative percentage of total forest area composed of host species. The statistical models showed that climatic variables are stronger indicators of outbreak likelihood than landscape structure and cover variables. Average climatic conditions were more likely to lead to outbreaks than extreme conditions, supporting the notion of coupling between a native insect and its native host. Still, some extreme events (i.e., periods of very low temperature or very high precipitation) did precede beetle infestation. This analysis suggested that there are predisposing and inciting factors at the large scale but the driving factors leading to individual infestations operate at smaller scales.     

Effects of climate on radial growth of Norway spruce and interactions with attacks by the bark beetle Dendroctonus micans (Kug., Coleoptera: Scolytidae): a dendroecological study in the French Massif Central

Samples of Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst) were dendrochronologically investigated in order to detect infestations by Dendroctonus micans (Kug.), the great spruce bark beetle (Col. Scolytidae), a relatively recent introduction to France. Uninfested natural forests located in the north-eastern French Alps and heavily infested plantations in the Ardèche region (Massif Central) were compared. The penetration holes bored in trunks by the bark beetle induced visible marks on wood, such as extreme ring width reductions, locally missing rings and crescent-shaped resin patches between consecutive rings that make possible a post-infestation dating.The outbreak began in 1979, 5 years prior to first insect visual detection by foresters. In the infested forest, tree basal area growth was not as sustained as in uninfested natural stands, but showed an inflection point at an unusually young tree age (from 30 to 40 years). Ring widths showing extreme synchronous radial growth reductions were caused either by excessively cold periods (e.g. in 1948, 1980, 1984, 1992) or by summer drought (as in 1986). Most of these weak growth years were shared with uninfested sites. In healthy forests, the consequences of extremely cold years were usually recorded only in high elevation stands, especially near the timberline, whereas summer drought effects were mostly visible in low altitude forests. By contrast, both phenomena were recorded in the infected Ardèche plantation. An analysis of tree-rings and monthly climate confirmed that Norway spruce growth in Ardèche plantations was reduced by excessively low minimum temperature during most parts of the year prior to ring formation, by higher than average maximum temperature during current spring and summer, and by drought in winter, spring and summer. Thus, the regional Ardèche climate with both cold winters and dry summers (especially in July) seems to weaken spruce trees planted there. Moreover, tree sensitivity to climate was found to be greatly enhanced by insect infestation. Such interactions between climatic stress and insect outbreak led to forest dieback in a 15–20-year period, when trees were still young (less than 70 years), and without any tree recovery. Therefore, in that region spruce plantations should be replaced by non-host species of Dendroctonus micans, especially where soil conditions may exacerbate drought effects.     

High-resolution multispectral satellite image and a postfire ground survey reveal prefire beetle damage on snags in Southern Alaska

Abstract

Alaskan spruce forests are exposed to both fire and spruce beetles [Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby)]. To understand the influence of spruce beetles on the process through which fire affects ecosystem function, we developed a reconstruction technique to measure prefire damage to trees caused by the spruce beetle. We validated our evaluation of prefire tree conditions using a high-resolution multispectral satellite image by comparing our results with a postfire ground survey. The prefire tree conditions determined by the two methods coincided well with each other. This result suggests that combining high-resolution multispectral imaging and postfire ground surveys of spruce beetles on snags is a powerful tool to determine the prefire condition of a forest in a changing boreal forest ecosystem.     

Assessing forest vulnerability and the potential distribution of pine beetles under current and future climate scenarios in the Interior West of the US

The aim of our study was to estimate forest vulnerability and potential distribution of three bark beetles (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) under current and projected climate conditions for 2020 and 2050. Our study focused on the mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae), western pine beetle (Dendroctonus brevicomis), and pine engraver (Ipspini). This study was conducted across eight states in the Interior West of the US covering approximately 2.2 million km² and encompassing about 95% of the Rocky Mountains in the contiguous US. Our analyses relied on aerial surveys of bark beetle outbreaks that occurred between 1991 and 2008. Occurrence points for each species were generated within polygons created from the aerial surveys. Current and projected climate scenarios were acquired from the WorldClim database and represented by 19 bioclimatic variables. We used Maxent modeling technique fit with occurrence points and current climate data to model potential beetle distributions and forest vulnerability. Three available climate models, each having two emission scenarios, were modeled independently and results averaged to produce two predictions for 2020 and two predictions for 2050 for each analysis. Environmental parameters defined by current climate models were then used to predict conditions under future climate scenarios, and changes in different species’ ranges were calculated. Our results suggested that the potential distribution for bark beetles under current climate conditions is extensive, which coincides with infestation trends observed in the last decade. Our results predicted that suitable habitats for the mountain pine beetle and pine engraver beetle will stabilize or decrease under future climate conditions, while habitat for the western pine beetle will continue to increase over time. The greatest increase in habitat area was for the western pine beetle, where one climate model predicted a 27% increase by 2050. In contrast, the predicted habitat of the mountain pine beetle from another climate model suggested a decrease in habitat areas as great as 46% by 2050. Generally, 2020 and 2050 models that tested the three climate scenarios independently had similar trends, though one climate scenario for the western pine beetle produced contrasting results. Ranges for all three species of bark beetles shifted considerably geographically suggesting that some host species may become more vulnerable to beetle attack in the future, while others may have a reduced risk over time.     

Multi-scale nest-site selection by black-backed woodpeckers in outbreaks of mountain pine beetles

Areas of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) outbreaks in the Black Hills can provide habitat for black-backed woodpeckers (Picoides arcticus), a U.S. Forest Service, Region 2 Sensitive Species. These outbreaks are managed through removal of trees infested with mountain pine beetles to control mountain pine beetle populations and salvage timber resources. To minimize impacts to black-backed woodpeckers while meeting management objectives, there is a need to identify characteristics of these areas that support black-backed woodpeckers. We examined the habitat associations of this species nesting in areas of beetle outbreaks in the Black Hills, South Dakota in 2004 and 2005. We used an information theoretic approach and discrete choice models to evaluate nest-site selection of 42 woodpecker nests at 3 spatial scales—territory, nest area, and nest tree. At the territory scale (250 m around nest), availability and distribution of food best explained black-backed woodpecker selection of beetle outbreaks versus the surrounding forest. Selection at the territory scale was positively associated with densities of trees currently infested by mountain pine beetles and indices of wood borer (Cerambycidae and Buprestidae) abundance, and was greatest at distances of 50–100 m from the nearest patch of infestation. At the nest-area scale (12.5 m radius around the nest), densities of snags positively influenced nest-area selection. Finally, at the nest-tree scale, aspen (Populus tremuloides) and 3–5-year-old ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) snags were important resources. The association between abundant wood-boring insects and black-backed woodpeckers creates a difficult challenge for forest managers. In the absence of fire, areas of beetle outbreak might serve as the only substantial source of habitat in the Black Hills. Regulating insect populations via salvage logging will reduce key food resources to black-backed woodpeckers during nesting. Therefore, given the relatively infrequent occurrence of large-scale fire in the Black Hills, management should recognize the importance of beetle-killed forests to the long-term viability of the black-backed woodpecker population in the Black Hills.     

Effects of spruce beetle infestations on berry productivity on the Kenai Peninsula,Alaska

Understanding the dynamics of berry productivity provides significant insight for managing the landscape to maintain ecosystem functions. On the Kenai Peninsula, as many as 14 mammal and 30 bird species commonly feed on berries produced by shrubs and forbs associated with spruce forests. Brown bears (Ursus arctos) and black bears (Ursus americanus), in particular, rely on berry crops for foraging. Gathering berries for subsistence or recreation purposes is also important to local residents and visitors. Recent spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis Kirby) infestations on the Kenai Peninsula have altered the dynamics of berry productivity. To assess this relationship, we evaluated the number and productivity of berries with the following environmental covariates: canopy cover, overstory type, infestation level, year of infestation, land type, and land type association. Data were sufficient to describe the relationships of these variables with the productivity of bunchberry dogwood (Cornus canadensis), black crowberry (Empetrum nigrum), false toadflax (Geocaulon lividum), strawberryleaf raspberry (Rubus pedatus), lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea), and a combination of 24 other species. We accomplished this using log-linear regression by which we estimated the variance using the negative binomial distribution. Canopy cover significantly influenced the productivity of all berry species except for false toadflax. Increasing canopy cover had a negative effect on berry productivity except for strawberryleaf raspberry. Overstory type influenced the productivity of all individual berry species. Infestation level was significantly related to the productivity of black crowberry, false toadflax, and the combined species group. Berry counts were generally lower in plots with low or medium infestation than in plots with high infestation. Relating the dynamics of berry productivity to the effects of spruce beetle infestations provides the opportunity for better management of post-beetle-infested forests.     

Factors affecting the spatio-temporal dispersion of Ips typographus (L.) in Bavarian Forest National Park: A long-term quantitative landscape-level analysis

The relationship between abiotic and biotic factors and the spread of the European spruce bark beetle, Ips typographus (L.), was investigated at a landscape level over a model period of 18 years in the Bavarian Forest National Park in Germany. Deadwood areas - where I. typographus - caused tree mortality of 100% - were photographed annually using Color-infrared aerial photography and digitally recorded in vector form. Thirty-two static and dynamic habitat variables were quantitatively determined using spatial pattern analysis and geostatistics from 1990 to 2007 at the landscape scale. The importance of the presence of deadwood areas for thirty-two habitat variables for the occurrence of the bark beetle was quantitatively recorded using an Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA).It was shown over a long model period that the intensity of the bark beetle infestation went through different phases over the 18-year study period. No mono-causal correlations could be found between individual habitat factors and the spread of the bark beetle over the entire model period. On the one hand, these findings underline the complexity of the system, on the other hand, this could be interpreted as a possible explanation for conclusions drawn by previous studies that differ from each other.The importance of individual habitat variables and the combinations of variables varied to different extents within these phases. An examination of the cumulative importance of the habitat demonstrated that the biological structural variables such as the distance from the site of the previous year's infestation, the area and the perimeter of the infested areas from the previous year are of great importance for the incidence of the bark beetle, but not across all years. Of equal significance for assessing the size of the area and the distance of the deadwood areas from the sites of the previous year's infestation are the size of the areas, the perimeter of the deadwood areas and the proximity index. An evaluation of the stages of forest succession showed that cumulatively, a short distance between the infested areas and the forest areas with conifers in the early stages of growth was an equally important habitat factor from 1990 to 2007. By quantitatively recording habitat factors that are significant for the spread of the bark beetle it may help predict areas that are at risk and thus to develop suitable management strategies to minimise or stop the spread and the effect of the bark beetle.     

The “sun-effect”: microclimatic alterations predispose forest edges to bark beetle infestations

Bark beetle dispersal and host selection behaviour are a complex and poorly understood process, resulting in specific spatio-temporal infestation patterns in forests. Aerial images from the Bavarian Forest National Park (Germany) provide a high-resolution, that is, tree-scale data set for the period 2001–2010, including information about Ips typographus (Col., Curculio., Scolytinae) infestation, the application of sanitary logging, natural forest edges and the area of living spruce susceptible to bark beetle infestation. We combined methods of GIS and image analysis to investigate the infestation probabilities at three types of forest edges under spatial and temporal aspects and compared them to the corresponding probabilities at the stand interior. Our results showed a pronounced infestation predisposition of such edge trees delimiting infestation patches cleared by sanitary logging measures, in particular at the south-facing edge sector. In contrast, edges adjacent to non-cleared infestation were revealed as less attractive for subsequent infestations, but nonetheless more attractive than permanent forest edges or the stand interior. Additionally, we measured near-bark surface air temperature to determine microclimatic differences at those edge- or non-edge sites and related them to predisposition results. Finally, our study emphasized favourable microclimatic conditions—summarized as the “sun-effect”—as a decisive factor enhancing the local infestation probability at recent forest edges in multiple ways. Both insect- and host tree-related reactions to suddenly altered microclimate are supposed to bias arbitrary colonization behaviour at patch and tree level, thereby mainly explaining observed infestation patterns. From the forester’s point of view, our results may contribute to precise bark beetle risk assessment and thus facilitate decision making in forest management.     

Types of bark beetle (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) infestation in spruce forest stands affected by air pollution, bark beetle outbreak and honey fungus (Armillaria mellea)

583 spruce stands in an area affected by air pollution and bark beetle outbreak in Eastern Slovakia were studied in 1996. According to bark beetle infestation of dominant and codominant trees, stands were classified into following types of spruce stand decline:Ips typographus-A,Ips typographus-B,Polygraphus poligraphus, I. typographus/P. poligraphus—A,I. typographus/P. poligraphus—B. The presence of attacked trees in forest edges, bark beetle spots and forest interior was the key important factor for the classification. Data from forest inventory and forest management evidence together with data on types of spruce stands decline were used in further analyses. Results shows that the distribution of forest stands classified into different types or uninfested stands is related mainly to host size and site quality. The percentage of spruce, exposition of stands and stand density showed significant effects. The mechanisms of spreading of studied bark beetle outbreak could be explained by direct effects of stress of trees caused by an abrupt increase of level of solar irradiation and by weakening of trees by the honey fungus.     

Is insecticide spraying a viable and cost-efficient management practice to control pine processionary moth in Mediterranean woodlands?

Insect pests are a major threat to many forests worldwide, from boreal to tropical forest ecosystems. Some pests exhibit periodical outbreaks, after which their populations often crash as a result of natural biological control. To offset such outbreaks, several management techniques are used, including aerial spraying of insecticides. The question remains whether pest decline following an outbreak is the result of management practices or a natural consequence of the insect's population cycle. In this study, we assessed the performance of aerial spraying of insecticides on pine woodland stands to control pine processionary moth Thaumetopoea pityocampa (PPM) outbreaks in southern Spain. To achieve this, we compared the degree to which a forest stand recovers from defoliation from one year of severe damage by PPM to the following year (infestation index) in stands that were treated (i.e. subjected to aerial spraying) and untreated using a 4-years database from the Regional Environmental Council. The results revealed a significant similar recovery from infestation after a PPM outbreak of both sprayed and non sprayed pine woodland stands, for the four most representative pine species (black, Aleppo, maritime, and stone pine). It is concluded that insecticide spraying cannot be considered a prevention for outbreaks if it is applied once the outbreak explodes. Management practices that can help control PPM outbreaks include promoting spatial heterogeneity at the landscape level, fostering biodiversity in pine plantations, and reinforcing parasitoid insect and predatory bird populations that negatively affect the PPM. This study illustrates how simple sampling designs and statistical tests can be useful decision-making tools and can help improve the environmental viability and cost-efficiency of forest management practices.     

Long-term dynamics of a mixed conifer stand in Slovenia managed with a farmer selection system

The single-tree selection system is an important option for management of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) and silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) forests because it provides continuous cover, requires low investments for tending, and promotes natural regeneration as well as high stand resistance and elasticity. It is often regarded as a very conservative system that usually results in only minor spatiotemporal changes in forest structure and composition. We studied management history, structural changes, regeneration dynamics, and light climate of a traditional single-tree farmer selection silver fir-Norway spruce forest (site typology Bazzanio-Abietetum). Stand structure was analyzed on five 0.25 ha permanent plots in 1994, 2001, and 2008. Regeneration density and height growth, forest floor vegetation, and light climate were also assessed on 1.5 × 1.5 m regeneration subplots in 2001 and 2008. Tree cores extracted from dominant trees from both species in two plots were used for reconstructing stand history and age structure of the canopy layer. We documented the forest response to three types of selection management regimes: excessive, normal, and conservative. Excessive management with harvest intensity significantly above the increment was documented until the late 1950s, including two peaks of heavy fellings (diameter limit cut) in the 1880s and 1930s, which favoured establishment of Norway spruce and released regeneration. The period that followed was characterized by normal selection management, but was nevertheless marked by a decline of silver fir as a result of air pollution and several droughts. This led to sanitary fellings that were carried out from the late 1970s to the early 1990s. In the last two decades conservative management followed, which led to suppression and decline of regeneration, especially of Norway spruce, and loss of selection structure. Although we recorded lower regeneration potential of silver fir compared with Norway spruce within the seedling category, silver fir outcompeted Norway spruce within the small-sized tree category (1 cm < dbh ? 10 cm) because of its superior height growth in low light levels (diffuse light <6%) and occupied a greater share of the canopy. Nevertheless, we anticipate that over the long-term the low light regime will also cause regeneration decline of silver fir and broadleaves. Our research revealed significant structural changes in a single-tree farmer selection forest during the last 150 years. These were a result of variable management regime and environment. A farmer single-tree selection system could better mimic the natural disturbance regime if spatiotemporal combinations of diverse felling regimes would be used.