Fungal succession in sapwood of Norway spruce infested by the bark beetle Ips typographus

Fungal invasion of Norway spruce sapwood was investigated during a period of 130 weeks fol-lowing attack by the spruce bark beetle Ips typographus. Heavy beetle attack tended to overwhelm the trees quickly and no secondary resinosis was produced. Nonetheless, fungal penetration in the sapwood was initiated only slowly, although it accelerated during the fourth week after attack. Typically the leading edge of fungal penetration was a few millimeters in advance of the visible blue-stain during the sapwood colonization. Fungi invaded the sapwood in a successional pattern with the most pathogenic species Ophiostoma polonicum first, followed by other beetle-transmitted Ophiostoma and Graphium species. The later succession was probably influenced by sapwood moisture. Strong decaying white-rotters invaded near the base of the trees, where sapwood moisture remained favourable, while cf. Trichoderma viride dominated in the drier parts or the trees.     

Impact of the Carpathians on the genetic structure of the spruce bark beetle Ips typographus

The Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly 1,500 km long across Central and Eastern Europe. They are an important area for biodiversity and belong to one of the major refuges of the last ice ages for many organisms. The forests of the Carpathians are dominated by spruce, which have suffered continuous outbreaks of the eight spined spruce bark beetle, Ips typographus, in recent decades. The phylogeography of this spruce pest is well documented, however, little is known on small scale, i.e., the Carpathians. Here we applied a mitochondrial marker and studied the genetic variation and structure of Carpathian populations and compared data with published one from other European populations. Twelve haplotypes were characterized and 42 % of those were not detected in other European populations. Despite a slight genetic structure, differences were observed in the haplotype distribution and diversity between the Western/Southern Carpathians and the Eastern Carpathians reflecting at least two potential refugial areas for I. typographus within the Carpathian mountain system. Further data show that the Eastern Beskidian Mountains of the Carpathians could act as barrier for several European haplotypes. This small-scale analysis reveals that the Carpathians have been an important glacial and post-glacial refuge for I. typographus. This information is important for a preventive and reactive forest management.     

Fungi associated with the spruce bark beetle Ips typographus in an endemic area in Norway

To investigate the fungal flora associated with the spruce bark beetle Ips typographus in an endemic area, beetles were collected during the flight period in six locations in Tr?ndelag, Norway. The beetles were inoculated into fresh Norway spruce logs, and the frequency of different species was monitored by fungal isolation from bark and wood. The most common species were Ophiostoma bicolor, O. penicillatum, O. polonicum and a previously undescribed Graphium species, the same species which were the most important associates of I. Typographus in an epidemic area in southeastern Norway. The frequency of the primary invader, O. polonicum, was, however, lower in Tr?ndelag, which may indicate that this species is less frequent in endemic areas than in epidemic areas.     

Retention of wind-felled trees and the risk of consequential tree mortality by the European spruce bark beetle Ips typographus in Finland

Abstract

Autumn storms felled about 7 million m³ of forest in southern Finland in 2001. Windthrow area and timber characteristics, as well as numbers of standing spruce trees attacked and killed by Ips typographus, were recorded in 61 Norway spruce [Picea abies (L.) Karst.]-dominated windthrow areas. Generalized linear models were used to identify significant variables predicting the risk for consequential tree mortality by I. typographus. None of the windthrow areas with fewer than 20 wind-felled spruce trees (WFS) (n=28) and only half of the areas with 20 or more WFS (n=33) harboured trees killed by I. typographus during the years 2003–2005. The quantity and diameter of WFS and the basal area of recently dead standing spruce trees correlated positively with the risk of tree deaths. This study indicates that in Finland, at endemic I. typographus population levels, it is safe to leave fewer than 20 WFS in managed forests. Retention of even larger quantities of trees does not seem to evoke significant numbers of consequential tree deaths by I. typographus in managed forests. However, in stands where the natural mortality of spruce trees is high, the risks of consequential tree deaths after wind disturbance will also be higher.     

Interactions among Norway spruce,the bark beetle Ips typographus and its fungal symbionts in times of drought

Journal of Pest Science - Resilience and functionality of European Norway spruce forests are increasingly threatened by mass outbreaks of the bark beetle Ips typographus promoted by heat, wind...     

Damage reduction and performance of mass trapping devices for forest protection against the spruce bark beetle, Ips typographus (Coleoptera Curculionidae Scolytinae)

? The spruce bark beetle, Ips typographus, is one of the main European forest pests, and mass trapping is probably the most common strategy applied to reduce its population density. However, the results concerning the effectiveness of this control system are often controversal, and many studies consider only the trapping performance with no attention to the damage reduction.

? During spring-summer 2005, a control program against I. typographus outbreaks was set up in NE Italy. Twenty-four spruce forests heavily infested by I. typographus were studied: six protected by pheromone slot-traps, six by horizontal trap-logs and six by standing trap-logs; six untreated stands were kept as controls. Trap-logs were baited with a pheromone specific to I. typographus and treated with insecticide. Each type of device was tested at high, medium and low density in relation to the number of trees infested during the previous year. New damage occurring in the investigated stands was later monitored for one year.

? Protected forests showed mean damage about 80% lower in 2005 than in 2004, with no statistical difference among traps, trap-logs or standing trap-logs. Instead, unprotected forests (controls) suffered damage to a similar extent in both years. Trapping devices showed no statistical differences among mean captures. Device densities showed similar results in damage reduction and insect trapping.

? The results support the hypothesis that intensive trapping performed at stand level may be useful for protecting forests against I. typographus, locally reducing population density and tree mortality.

     

Virulence of ophiostomatoid fungi associated with the spruce bark beetleIps typographus f.japonicus in Yezo spruce

Yezo spruce trees (Picea jezoensis), approximately 40-year-old were inoculated with eight ophiostomatoid fungi associated withIps typographus f.japonicus to compare relative virulence of the fungi. Among them,Ophistoma penicillatum formed the longest necrotic lesion on inner bark around inoculation points, followed byO. aenigmaticum, Ceratocystis polonica, andO. bicolor, whileC. polonica formed a larger dry zone in sapwood than the other fungi. Yezo spruce trees were also mass inoculated withC. polonica, O. penicillatum, O. piceae singly or mixed to demonstrate the ability of the fungi to kill Yezo spruce trees. The trees inoculated withC. polonica, O. penicillatum or the mixed inoculum showed discoloration of needles in the early summer of the next year and died by autumn. However, the trees inoculated withO. piceae or the control inocula did not die, except for one tree. These results indicated thatC. polonica andO. penicillatum were more virulent thanO. piceae and suggested that they might be at least partially responsible for the mortality of the beetle-infested Yezo spruce trees. Part of this study was supported by the Sumitomo Foundation, Japan to Y. Yamaoka and I. Takahashi. Part of this study was presented at the 107th meeting of the Japanese Forestry Society, April 1–4, 1996, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, at the 42nd annual meeting of the Mycological Society of Japan, May 16–17, 1998, Kyoto, and at the 110th meeting of the Japanese Forestry Society, April 2–5, 1999, Matsuyama, Ehime. Contribution No. 143, Laboratories of Plant Pathology and Mycology, Institute of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Tsukuba.     

云杉八齿小蠹在云杉内寄生为害期有效积温的测定

对云杉八齿小蠹寄生为害期有效积温的研究结果表明：云杉八齿小蠹自成虫蛀入寄主树皮下时开始至下一代新羽化的第1头成虫羽化后扬飞时止,其有效积温为195.415日度±10日度,发育起点温度为18.294℃±0.2℃,平均历时50.2 d。     

Genetic differentiation between local populations of Ips typographus in the high Tatra Mountains range

Many studies have addressed the question of dispersal potential of Ips typographus, however the approach of molecular ecology have been used only in a few of them. Moreover, none of them has done it on fine scale of just one mountain range. Molecular analysis using a set of six polymorphic microsatellite markers was applied in this study. Adult beetles of I. typographus collected in 22 localities of the High Tatra Mountains were used for the study of genetic differentiation between rapidly expanded local populations of bark beetles after windstorm calamities in spruce stands. Almost none genetic differentiation among local populations or among larger spatial units has been revealed. Analyses did not indicate isolation of populations by distance or formation of population structure. This suggests high potential of I. typographus to disperse over large distances and even the possibility to overcome high mountains ridges.     

云杉八齿小蠹的风险分析报告

云杉八齿小蠹可危害多种云杉。危害初期幼虫在寄主树干坑道内取食,树皮生长正常,针叶颜色正常;危害中期被害树干上可见小蠹羽化孔,树皮较易剥离,针叶开始变色;严重危害时被害树干树皮极易剥落,皮下可见小蠹和幼虫,或树木枯死,对云杉和木材生产造成一定程度的危害。通过对云杉八齿小蠹的风险分析,其风险评估值R=1.85,在我国属中度危险的林业有害生物。     

Fungi isolated from Picea abies infested by the bark beetle Ips typographus in the Białowieża forest in north‐eastern Poland

The assemblage of fungi occurring in the sapwood of Norway spruce (Picea abies) and in bark beetle galleries following attack by the Eurasian spruce bark beetle Ips typographus was investigated in the Bia?owie?a forest in north‐eastern Poland. Fungi were isolated from blue‐stained sapwood of beetle‐infested spruce trees in June 2002, and a few isolates were also obtained from ascospores and conidia taken from perithecia and asexual structures occurring in the gallery systems of the insects. The mycobiota of I. typographus in the Bia?owie?a forest was dominated by ophiostomatoid fungi, which were represented by seven species. Four species, including Ceratocystis polonica, Grosmannia penicillata, Ophiostoma ainoae and Ophiostoma bicolor were isolated at high frequencies, whereas three other taxa, Ceratocystiopsis minuta, Ceratocystiopsis alba and a Pesotum sp. were rare. The anamorphic fungus Graphium fimbriisporum and yeasts also occurred occasionally. In addition, the basidiomycete Gloeocystidium ipidophilum was relatively common. The pathogenic blue‐stain fungus C. polonica was the dominant fungal associate of I. typographus in the Bia?owie?a forest, which is consistent with a previous study at this area in the 1930s. Ceratocystis polonica was the most frequently isolated species at the leading edge of fungal colonization in the sapwood and had on an average penetrated deeper into the wood than other fungal associates. This suggests that it acts as a primary invader into the sapwood after attack by I. typographus in the Bia?owie?a forest, followed by O. bicolor, O. ainoae, G. ipidophilum and G. penicillata. Thus far, the Bia?owie?a forest is one of the few areas in Europe, where C. polonica has been reported as a dominate fungal associate of I. typographus.     

云杉八齿小蠹体内外和坑道内真菌多样性初步研究

2009年8月在黑龙江丰林国家级保护区云杉八齿小蠹危害的红皮云杉林内,对云杉八齿小蠹体内外和坑道内真菌进行了分离.研究结果表明,黑龙江丰林国家级自然保护区内云杉八齿小蠹体内外和坑道内栖息真菌多样性比较丰富,获得真菌13属26种,其中Alternaria、Fusarium、Hypocrea、Ophiostoma、Peni...     

Effectiveness of modified White's solution at removing ascomycetes associated with the bark beetle Ips pini

Modified White's solution (1 g HgCl₂/l H₂O) is widely used to surface disinfest bark beetles of their phoretic fungi. We investigated the effectiveness of this solution at disinfesting adult Ips pini from its associated ophiostomatoid fungi. A treatment for 1, 4 or 8 min does not completely rid beetles of phoretic fungi, but does substantially reduce the amount of fungi they carry externally. Sterilizing with modified White's solution caused limited mortality (<16%).     

云杉八齿小蠹的扬飞与物候观测

采用物候期与信息素监测相结合的方法,研究了云杉八齿小蠹的扬飞规律。结果表明:林间云杉八齿小蠹成虫开始活动时,忍冬和紫丁香的花蕾出现、接骨木和东北茶藨子进入开花初期、蒲公英处于开花盛期;当榆叶梅进入开花初期、紫丁香进入开花盛期时林间虫口密度达到最高,是信息素诱集防治的最佳时机;当接骨木进入开花盛期时,整个扬飞期结束。     

Winter mortality in sub-corticolous populations of Ips typographus (Coleoptera, Scolytidae) and its parasitoids in the south-eastern Alps

A study concerning the winter mortality of a sub-corticolous population of Ips typographus and its parasitoids has been carried out in the south-eastern Alps (Italy) during the winter 1997/98. Three attacked spruce trees were sampled three times (November, February and April) by collecting infested bark disks (1?dm² each). All insects that emerged from the bark or died in the samples before emergence were counted. The mean number of living Ips typographus occurring under the bark decreases by 49?% from November to April. Winter mortality mainly affects larval stages and young adults. The same trend was observed for the parasitoids Coeloides bostrychorum (48.5?%) and Roptrocerus xylophagorum (47.5?%).     

Pronounced fluctuations of spruce bark beetle (Scolytinae: Ips typographus) populations do not invoke genetic differentiation

The dynamics of a recent outbreak of the spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus) in Switzerland was ruled by a devastating winter storm in 1999 and the drought and heat of the summer 2003. Starting from a similar level of population sizes, estimated as the rate of infested growing stock, beetle populations increased differently in magnitude and time among different regions in Switzerland. Accordingly, we expected local or regional genetic differentiation as a result of such repeated population expansion/breakdown dynamics. We analyzed 5 nuclear microsatellites of spruce bark beetles sampled from pheromone traps at 30 locations distributed over Switzerland. Our genetic results did not indicate any sign of population differentiation, structure, isolation by distance, or recent bottlenecks. This complete lack of genetic structure suggests that spruce bark beetles are highly mobile, precluding the formation of a spatial structure at neutral molecular markers. Thus, this molecular–genetic approach does not allow us to discriminate among regional gene pools and to identify the origin of expanding beetle populations.     

Repression of Ips typographus Infestations in Stored Logs by Semiochemicals

Logs of fresh‐felled Norway spruce were stored close to the south‐facing edges of clear‐cuts from the previous winter and treated with controlled release formulation of: 1. The pheromone components verbenone and ipsenol, which act as antiaggregative pheromone in Ips typographus. 2. Turpentine, a by‐product derived from pulp mills. The experiments were conducted in 3 locations in South‐Norway during a 3‐year period. All experiments show that treatments with a combination of verbenone and ipsenol released from laminated structure dispensers significantly reduced the attack density of I. typographus, whereas turpentine treatment had no effect on the rate of beetle infestations.     

Gap dynamics in the Western Carpathian mixed beech old-growth forests affected by spruce bark beetle outbreak

Understanding how species-specific disturbances affect the dynamics of mixed forests is becoming increasingly important due to rapidly changing disturbance regimes. This study estimated the effect of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) mortality on the disturbance processes in two mixed beech stands of the Western Carpathians that were affected by a bark beetle outbreak. We evaluated the size distribution, fraction of canopy and expanded gaps, the characteristics of gapmakers and the contribution of different species to gap size. The measured canopy gap fraction was <5%, and most canopy gaps were small (<100 m²). Spruce was the most abundant gapmaker, and its share among gapmakers was 3–6 times higher than its share in the canopy. We found that the increase in spruce mortality due to the outbreak resulted in a fine-scale mortality pattern. However, spruce gapmakers did not contribute much to gap area size, as shown by a weak correlation between the number of spruce gapmakers and the area of expanded gaps. Diameter distribution of living versus recently dead trees showed that beech mortality occurred disproportionately in large size classes. However, dead spruce trees were equally frequent in all diameter classes, which means beetles did not exclusively attack larger trees in these stands during the outbreak. We conclude that spruce mortality may have influenced successional processes by giving a competitive advantage to two other species that were not affected by the outbreak, provided that a high deer browsing intensity does not hinder the regeneration of new seedlings.

     

Morphological and biological investigation of two pioneer Ips bark beetles in natural spruce forests in Qinghai Province, northwest China

Bark beetle species in natural stands of spruce, Picea crassifolia （Kom.） were investigated in Maixiu Forest Park, Qinghai Province, northwest China, during 2005 and 2007. Two pioneer Ips species, Ips nitidus Eggers and Ips shangrila Cognato and Sun were found. I. nitidus occurs naturally in northwest China. I. shangrila is a new species in the world. In the past, it was confused with I. mannsfeldi Wachtl in China. The damage of these two Ips species has been very severe in Maixiu and the morphological and bio-logical characteristics were studied. I. nitidus starts to fly in early May and prefers the mid to lower part of the host tree to colonize as its habitat. I. shangrila always infests from the top of the trunk, especially in branches larger than 3 cm in diameter in the crowns and sometimes even colonizes entire young trees. The two Ips species are the most destructive secondary bark beetles on P. crassifolia and always cause mortality of trees by their cooperation.