Dynamics of eastern larch stands and its relationships with larch sawfly outbreaks in the northern Clay Belt of Quebec

2002 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 206-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin-Philippe Girardin ◽  
Jacques Tardif ◽  
Yves Bergeron
Keyword(s):  
Black Spruce ◽  
Critical Factor ◽  
Stand Dynamics ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Gap Dynamics ◽  
Stem Analysis ◽  
Breast Height ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Larch Sawfly ◽  
Growth Analyses

Climate change, fires, and insects outbreaks can affect eastern larch (Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch) stand dynamics. To determine which of these factors had the greatest influence on stand dynamics, we sampled four wetlands dominated by larch on the margin of Lake Duparquet in the northern Clay Belt of Quebec. The ages of seedlings, saplings, and trees were determined in twelve 400-m2 plots. Increment cores were taken at breast height to determine past disturbance episodes related, among others, to larch sawfly (Pristiphora erichsonii (Hartig)) activity. Stem analysis was conducted using larch and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP) for identification of post-disturbance releases in height growth. Analyses at the stand and cluster levels showed that larch age structures were characterized by many unsynchronized establishment periods. In addition, a seedlings bank not much older than 10 years characterized many plots. Two larch sawfly outbreak episodes (1895–1912 and 1955–1962) identified by tree-ring and stem analysis were associated with larch establishment. A smaller outbreak in the late 1970s could also have contributed to the initiation of establishment in one stand. Our results suggest that the length (severity) of an outbreak may be a critical factor in explaining the different patterns of establishment observed in these stands. During a severe outbreak, larch establishment may occur mainly from surviving stems (increased seed production), whereas during a mild outbreak, larch establishment may occur from increased survival of pre-established seedlings and saplings. Further studies on the distribution of gaps within larch stands may provide better information on the pattern of mortality (gap dynamics) during an outbreak and may help to better understand larch establishment in these stands.

scholarly journals Comparative Height Growth of Eastern Larch and Black Spruce in Northwestern Ontario

1978 ◽  
Vol 54 (6) ◽  
pp. 296-297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Mead
Keyword(s):  
Picea Mariana ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Height Growth ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Stem Analysis ◽  
Northwestern Ontario ◽  
Analysis Methods ◽  
Spruce Stands

Height growth of eastern larch (Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch) and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) B.S.P.) was determined using standard stem analysis methods on trees from two sites in northwestern Ontario. The data were obtained from mixed larch-spruce stands which were relatively undisturbed. The larch exhibited substantially better height growth than the spruce through age 65.

VITAL DYES AS MARKERS FOR BEHAVIORAL AND POPULATION STUDIES OF THE LARCH SAWFLY, PRISTIPHORA ERICHSONII (HYMENOPTERA: TENTHREDINIDAE)

1968 ◽  
Vol 100 (5) ◽  
pp. 470-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Heron
Keyword(s):  
Rhodamine B ◽  
Population Studies ◽  
Nile Blue ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Vital Dyes ◽  
Flight Range ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Larch Sawfly ◽  
Adult Dispersal ◽  
Dye Retention

AbstractLarvae of the larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii (Htg.), were fed foliage of tamarack, Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch, treated with solutions of the vital dyes, Nile blue sulphate, rhodamine B, and coriphosphine O, to determine their suitability as markers. Coriphosphine O was highly toxic at the concentrations administered but successful tagging was obtained with the other two dyes. Optimal dye retention and survival were obtained when larvae were fed for 3 days early in the last stadium using Nile blue sulphate and throughout the last stadium using rhodamine B.Both dyes persisted throughout development and were incorporated in the cocoons and the oviposited eggs. They could be readily seen in all stages except for the cocoons and for eggs that contained rhodamine B. The dyes could be detected in cocoons by treating them with cold KOH followed by ethanol. The presence of rhodamine B in the eggs could be ascertained by its yellow fluorescence in ultraviolet.The dyes incorporated in the cocoons are relatively stable and laboratory tests indicate they probably can withstand weathering under normal field conditions over a 1-year period.The use of these dyes for internal marking should prove useful in studying adult dispersal and flight range and as a technique for use in population studies of the larch sawfly.

Survival and growth of eastern larch, balsam fir, and black spruce six years after winter browning in northeastern Ontario, Canada

2013 ◽  
Vol 89 (06) ◽  
pp. 777-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rongzhou Man ◽  
Gordon J. Kayahara ◽  
Stephen Foley ◽  
Cory Wiseman
Keyword(s):  
Cold Hardiness ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Weather Data ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Stem Analysis ◽  
Growing Seasons ◽  
Survival And Growth ◽  
Needle Loss

In spring 2007, young conifers suffered extensive needle and bud injury near Hearst, Kapuskasing, and Cochrane in northeastern Ontario, Canada. Analysis of weather data revealed that the damage was likely caused by earlier than normal loss of cold hardiness during higher than normal temperatures in late April and early May. The dehardened trees were damaged in the cold days that followed. We report the survival and growth of eastern larch (Larix laricina), balsam fir (Abies balsamea), and black spruce (Picea mariana) in the affected area based on field assessments and stem analysis of affected trees following the event. Total survival through six growing seasons following damage was 98% in eastern larch but only about 70% in balsam fir and black spruce. The effect of the damage on tree growth was greater and longer lasting for diameter than height. Both survival and growth reductions were associated with high levels of mature needle loss and bud damage. Implications of these findings for forest management are discussed in light of expected climate change.

Tree-ring evidence of larch sawfly outbreaks in western Labrador, Canada

2010 ◽  
Vol 40 (8) ◽  
pp. 1542-1549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter H. Nishimura ◽  
Colin P. Laroque
Keyword(s):  
Black Spruce ◽  
Grid Point ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Single Site ◽  
Systematic Sampling ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Regional Trends ◽  
Larch Sawfly ◽  
History Of ◽  
Spatio Temporal

As many insect outbreak reconstructions are typically based on targeted single-site sampling, researchers have often been limited in their ability to draw conclusions about regional trends as opposed to local trends in the data. The results of this paper demonstrate the value of a systematic sampling design when studying spatio-temporal processes that can vary greatly within large continuous areas of forest. Many single-site research programs have been conducted to reconstruct the history of larch sawfly ( Pristiphora erichsonii Htg.) outbreaks in the eastern boreal region of North America. However, no such research has yet been conducted in the region of Labrador. In an attempt to illustrate the strength of a systematic gridded sampling protocol over a single-site study, we sampled a 12-site grid in western Labrador. Dominant and codominant species were sampled at each grid point, resulting in 24 master chronologies. Six eastern larch ( Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch) chronologies (host) and a regional black spruce ( Picea mariana (Mill.) Britton, Sterns, Poggenb.) chronology (nonhost) were used to establish a host–nonhost analysis of past sawfly outbreaks on a regional scale. Both regional and localized larch sawfly outbreaks were identified, but in general, larch sawfly outbreaks in western Labrador appeared to be spatially synchronous and regional in scale.

HEAD CAPSULE MEASUREMENTS OF THE LARCH SAWFLY, PRISTIPHORA ERICHSONII (HYMENOPTERA: TENTHREDINIDAE) IN KOUCHIBOUGUAC NATIONAL PARK, NEW BRUNSWICK

1980 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 111-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Maltais
Keyword(s):  
New Brunswick ◽  
Prince Edward Island ◽  
National Park ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Head Capsule ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Maritime Provinces ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Larch Sawfly

The larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii (Htg.), is a serious defoliator of trees of the genus Larix and particularly of Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch in eastern Canada. According to Reeks (1954), four outbreaks occurred in the Maritime Provinces between 1883 and 1942. Following the last outbreak, few specimens of the insect were found in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island until 1960 when an outbreak started near Fredericton, New Brunswick. Since, outbreaks varying in degree from moderate to severe have persisted throughout this province.In the course of a study on the ecology and population dynamics of the insect it was found necessary to verify and separate the various developmental stages of the larvae.

RECENT OUTBREAK OF THE LARCH SAWFLY, PRISTIPHORA ERICHSONII (HARTIG), IN SUBARCTIC QUÉBEC

1991 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 611-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Conrad Cloutier ◽  
Louise Filion
Keyword(s):  
General Characteristic ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Population Increase ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Sudden Increase ◽  
Frequency Distributions ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Shoot Production ◽  
Larch Sawfly ◽  
Long Shoots

AbstractLarch sawfly oviposition activity as revealed by scarring of long shoots of eastern larch, Larix laricina (DuRoi) K. Koch, was measured at various locations in the high boreal forest and forest tundra in Québec in 1988 and 1989. The data show that larch sawfly is established up to the tree line, even on isolated larch growing under climatic conditions that are extreme for this tree. Frequency distributions of scarred shoots as a function of time suggest thai larch sawfly populations reached outbreak levels in the 1980s, with peak numbers in 1981 for the high boreal, and in 1985 for the subarctic regions sampled. Trends in long shoot production by larch trees started to fluctuate simultaneously with the sudden increase in larch sawfly populations along the Grande Rivière de la Baleine in 1984. In this region in 1985, the proportion of long shoots used by Pristiphora erichsonii averaged 20–35%, which may have limited further population increase. Although foliage reduction and branch mortality were observed, mortality of whole trees was not a general characteristic of this outbreak.

HOST DERIVED CHEMICALS: THE BASIS FOR PREFERENTIAL FEEDING BEHAVIOR OF THE LARCH SAWFLY, PRISTIPHORA ERICHSONII (HYMENOPTERA: TENTHREDINIDAE), ON TAMARACK, LARIX LARICINA

1979 ◽  
Vol 111 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Wagner ◽  
T. Ikeda ◽  
D. M. Benjamin ◽  
F. Matsumura
Keyword(s):  
Thin Layer ◽  
Feeding Behavior ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Distilled Water ◽  
Sawfly Larvae ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Larch Sawfly ◽  
Short Shoots ◽  
Layer Chromatography ◽  
Preferential Feeding

AbstractLarch sawfly larvae, Pristiphora erichsonii (Hartig), naturally reject single needles of newly elongated shoots and consume only tufted foliage from 1 year or older short shoots of tamarack, Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch. Forest entomologists have recognized this unusual feeding behavior for over a century, but not until now has the mechanism been understood. In the bioassasy of unpurified single needle methanol extracts (concn. 1 g needle/ml), 88.5% of the larvae were feeding on the control end of the bioassay twig (solvent only) after 4 h. This was significantly different from a similar bioassay of tufted foliage extract (t-value significant at 0.02 level) and a non-treated control bioassay (distilled water on both ends of bioassay twig) (t-value significant at 0.01 level). In the bioassay of a purified extract of single tamarack needles (TLC fraction 7), 81% of larvae were feeding on the untreated end (t-value significant 0.02). Thin-layer chromatography fraction 7, of eight fractions delineated, alone induced significant feeding inhibition.

A Note on the Occurrence of the Larch Sawfly in Alaska

1966 ◽  
Vol 98 (6) ◽  
pp. 671-672
Author(s):  
Donald C. Schmiege
Keyword(s):  
First Record ◽  
Larix Laricina ◽  
Sawfly Larvae ◽  
Pristiphora Erichsonii ◽  
Larch Sawfly

Larvae of the larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii (Htg.), were collected in Alaska in 1965. This is the first record of this insect in Alaska. On 26 and 27 July 1965, stands of tamarack, Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch, were examined at 16 locations along the Richardson Highway southeast of Fairbanks. Larch sawfly larvae were collected from 12 of the stands examined. Collection locations are shown in Fig. 1.

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