Soil drainage class, host tree species, and thinning influence host tree resistance to the spruce budworm

2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (10) ◽  
pp. 1771-1783 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alvaro Fuentealba ◽  
Éric Bauce
Keyword(s):  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Host Tree ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Thinning Intensity ◽  
Drainage Class ◽  
Tree Resistance ◽  
Commercial Thinning ◽  
The Impact

Thinning has frequently been recommended for reducing damage caused by spruce budworm ( Choristoneura fumiferana (Clemens)). It is believed that this technique enhances the mechanisms of resistance of trees (antibiosis and tolerance) to this insect. However, various research projects that have focused upon effects of this silvicultural tool on host tree resistance have yielded equivocal results. A better understanding of the effects of this technique on host tree resistance and budworm performance can help us to reduce the impact of this insect while respecting the ecological integrity of the forests. We examined the effects of stand commercial thinning and drainage class on balsam fir ( Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.)), white spruce ( Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), and black spruce ( Picea mariana (Mill.) Britton, Sterns & Poggenb.) resistance to spruce budworm 3 years after thinning. We wanted to determine if this technique could be used as preventive tool against insect defoliators. Field-rearing experiments of spruce budworm were conducted, together with foliar chemical analyses, along a gradient of stand thinning intensity (0% (control), 25% (light), and 40% (heavy)) and drainage class (rapidly drained, class 2; mesic with seepage, class 3; subhygric, class 4; and hydric, class 5). Despite having favoured budworm performance (high pupal mass) and winter survival, heavy thinning increased balsam fir and white spruce tolerance (amount of current-year foliage remaining) to a level that resulted in overall increased host tree resistance to the insect. This response was caused by strong foliage production in reaction to the thinning treatment. Light thinning did not increase host tolerance, except in balsam fir and white spruce that were growing on hydric and subhygric sites, respectively, demonstrating the importance of this variable in determining host tree resistance. These results suggest that heavy thinning may be used as a preventive measure during the low-density phase of budworm populations, since this technique increased foliar production in balsam fir and white spruce, rendering them more resistant to attack by this insect.

Insect–host relationships influencing disturbance by the spruce budworm in a boreal mixedwood forest

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (9) ◽  
pp. 1870-1882 ◽  
Author(s):  
V G Nealis ◽  
J Régnière
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Black Spruce ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Host Tree ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Insect Host ◽  
Boreal Mixedwood Forest

Demographic data from a 15-year outbreak of the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem.) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), in a boreal mixedwood forest in Ontario, Canada, are used to interpret stand-level ecological disturbance in terms of susceptibility and vulnerability (mortality) of balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.), white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss), and black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP). All three host-tree species are highly susceptible for oviposition by the spruce budworm and all are suitable for completion of the budworm life cycle. Host-related differences in susceptibility arise from the degree of synchrony between spruce budworm phenology during the feeding stages and host-tree phenology. Spruce budworm density was highest on white spruce throughout the budworm's life cycle and over the course of the outbreak, but more rapid flushing and growth of current-year buds in white spruce reduced damage relative to that on balsam fir. Conversely, later flushing of current-year buds on black spruce led to a reduction in budworm density early in the season and a corresponding reduction in defoliation. The combination of high budworm densities and severe defoliation caused mortality first on balsam fir. By the end of the outbreak, 89% of the balsam fir component >10 cm DBH was eliminated compared with 49% of the white spruce in the same size class. The lower susceptibility of black spruce resulted in survival of all but the smallest size classes of that species. Nonhost species such as trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) nearly doubled their basal area during the outbreak. The results link processes inherent in the insect–host relationship with the population ecology of the insect and the disturbance ecology of the forest.

LONG TERM STUDY OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF AERIAL APPLICATION OF BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS – ACEPHATE COMBINATIONS AGAINST THE SPRUCE BUDWORM, CHORISTONEURA FUMIFERANA (LEPIDOPTERA: TORTRICIDAE)

1977 ◽  
Vol 109 (9) ◽  
pp. 1239-1248 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. N. Morris
Keyword(s):  
Bacillus Thuringiensis ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Larval Mortality ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Population Densities ◽  
Long Term Study

AbstractBacillus thuringiensis (Dipel® 36B) mixed with a sublethal concentration of acephate (Orthene®) (O, S-dimethyl acetylphosphoramidothioate), an organophosphorous insecticide, was applied at 2.35–14 l./ha to white spruce (Picea glauca) and balsam fir (Abies balsamea) trees infested with spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem.). The treatment rate was 20 Billion International Units of B. thuringiensis (B.t.) activity with or without 42 g of active ingredient of acephate/ha.The ground deposit of the standard Dipel wettable powder formulation was 12% of emitted volume compared with 21–32% for the Dipel 36B flowable. The viability of B.t. spores was drastically reduced after 1 day of weathering but a high level of biological activity by the spore–crystal complex persisted for up to 20 days post-spray due probably to crystal activity.The addition of about 10% of the recommended operational rate of acephate to the B.t. suspension increased larval mortality by 34% when applied at 4.7 l./ha. Reductions in budworm populations were 97–99% in B.t. + acephate plots and 86–90% in B.t. alone plots.Plots with moderate budworm densities of up to 27 larvae/100 buds on white spruce and 36/100 on balsam fir were satisfactorily protected from excessive defoliation in the year of spray by B.t. with or without acephate. Plots with higher population densities were not satisfactorily protected based on the branch sample examination but aerial color photographs indicated good protection to the top third of the trees. Population declines were greater and defoliation and oviposition were lower in the treated plots than in the untreated checks 1 year later without further treatment. Two years later the larval population densities in all plots were low but the density was twice as high in the untreated check as in the treated plots, indicating long term suppression by the treatments. Defoliation was negligible in all plots.The treatments had no deleterious effect on spruce budworm parasitism. The data indicate that the integrated approach using Bacillus thuringiensis – chemical pesticide combinations is a viable alternative to the use of chemical pesticides alone in spruce budworm control. Large scale testing is now warranted.

Stochastic simulation of growth loss in thinned balsam fir stands defoliated by the spruce budworm in Newfoundland

1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 703-710 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erhard John Dobesberger
Keyword(s):  
Stochastic Simulation ◽  
Larval Density ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
Damage Function ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Negative Exponential Function ◽  
Attack Pattern ◽  
Growth Loss ◽  
The Impact

A stochastic simulation model was developed to derive a damage function for the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana Clem. (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), and balsam fir, Abies balsamea (L.) Mill., herbivore interaction at the stand level for open-grown trees. Both aggregated and uniform models of attack pattern by late-instar larvae based on k of the negative binomial were evaluated to determine the impact of larval density and attack pattern on the loss in stemwood volume increment of young, thinned balsam fir stands in Newfoundland. Percentage loss in stemwood increment was a nonlinear, negative exponential function of initial larval density. Implementation of control measures to prevent 50% defoliation that is caused by about 14 larvae/branch tip would result in saving 24% of the annual stemwood increment after 1 year of defoliation and about 32% after 2 years of cumulative defoliation. Aggregation of spruce budworm larvae among trees within a forest stand results in less growth loss compared with a uniform pattern of attack. The nonlinear damage function may suggest tolerance and possibly compensatory growth after herbivory by low population levels of the spruce budworm.

Variations in the foliar amino acid composition of flowering and non-flowering balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.) and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) in relation to outbreaks of the spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem))

1971 ◽  
Vol 49 (7) ◽  
pp. 1005-1011 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. Kimmins
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Picea Glauca ◽  
Host Plants ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Apparent Correlation

The amino acids of new and old foliage of flowering and non-flowering balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.) and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) were investigated using two-dimensional descending paper chromatography. The data were analyzed for variation associated with age of foliage, age of tree, and flowering condition. The concentration of foliar amino acids was greater in balsam fir than in white spruce, and greater in new foliage than old foliage.The difference in concentration between foliage of flowering and non-flowering trees was smaller. However, the new foliage of flowering fir had higher levels of most of the amino acids examined than any other foliage category. This appears to reflect the known suitability of these foliage categories for spruce budworm larvae. While the data presented do not quantify the ecological significance of this apparent correlation, they do support the theory that variations in the nutritional quality of host plants play a very important role in the dynamics of herbivore populations.

One and two years impact of commercial thinning on spruce budworm feeding ecology and host tree foliage production and chemistry

1996 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
pp. 393-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Éric Bauce
Keyword(s):  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Soluble Sugars ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
First Year ◽  
Commercial Thinning ◽  
Mill Stand ◽  
Second Year

Field rearing experiments of spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clem.), were conducted in conjunction with foliar chemical analyses, one and two years after a commercial thinning (removal of 25% stand basal area) in a 50-year-old balsam fir, Abies balsamea (L.) Mill., stand. The first year after thinning, spruce budworm larvae reared on the residual trees developed five days faster and removed 43% more foliage than those reared on control trees, but in the second year they developed two days faster and removed 37% more foliage. The increase in larval development rate was related to an increase in foliar soluble sugars while a reduction in foliar monoterpenes caused by the thinning apparently accounted for the greater amount of foliage ingested by the larvae. The first year after thinning, trees were more vulnerable to spruce budworm because there was no increase in foliage production and the trees were more heavily defoliated. However, in the second year trees were less vulnerable to the insect because there was an increase in foliage production that exceeded the increase in defoliation, hence a net gain in foliage. Results from this study showed that commercial thinning could reduce the vulnerability of balsam fir trees to spruce budworm if thinning is conducted two years prior to budworm outbreak, but the same silvicultural procedure could increase the vulnerability to the insect if it is conducted during an outbreak. Key words: spruce budworm, balsam fir, chemistry, thinning, defoliation

scholarly journals EFFECTS OF DEFOLIATION BY SPRUCE BUDWORM (CHORISTONEURA FUMIFERANA CLEM.) ON RADIAL GROWTH AT BREAST HEIGHT OF BALSAM FIR (ABIES BALSAMEA (L.) MILL.) AND WHITE SPRUCE (PICEA GLAUCA (MOENCH) VOSS.)

1958 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. R. Blais
Keyword(s):  
Picea Glauca ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
First Year ◽  
Growth Ratio ◽  
Breast Height

The relationship between spruce budworm defoliation and radial growth at breast height for balsam fir and white spruce trees of merchantable size was studied in various stands in northwestern Ontario. Defoliation was recorded yearly for these stands from the beginning of the infestation, and radial growth measurements were obtained from increment cores. The first year of radial growth suppression was calculated by comparing the growth of the affected species with that of jack pine and red pine trees by means of a growth-ratio technique. Apparent suppression in balsam fir and white spruce varied between stands, and, generally, occurred at the earliest in the second year and at the latest in the fourth year of severe defoliation. A wide ring at the base of the tree coinciding with the first year of suppression as reported by Craighead was non-existent.

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SPRUCE BUDWORM (LEPIDOPTERA: TORTRICIDAE) EGG MASS DENSITY AND RESULTANT DEFOLIATION OF BALSAM FIR AND WHITE SPRUCE

1990 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.J. Lysyk
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Mass Density ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Population Trends ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Egg Mass ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Regional Population

AbstractAnnual spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clemens), survey data were subjected to multiple and logistic regression analyses to examine the relationship between egg mass density in the fall and resultant defoliation the next season. Egg mass density was the most important variable associated with resultant defoliation, followed by current defoliation, regional population trends, host species, and sprays. Together, these accounted for 60% of the variation in resultant defoliation. Balsam fir [Abies balsamea (L.) Miller] suffered greater levels of defoliation than white spruce [Picea glauca (Moench) Voss] at a given egg mass density. Resultant defoliation of balsam fir also showed a steeper response to egg mass density than resultant defoliation of white spruce. Levels of current defoliation increased susceptibility to defoliation in a similar manner between species, as did regional population trends. Sprays were more effective at reducing resultant defoliation on balsam fir than on white spruce but, overall, did not confer a high level of foliage protection. Predictions of resultant defoliation using the multiple regression models had confidence limits averaging 75%, which are too large to be useful for predictive purposes. The logistic regression equations could be used to predict the probability of a stand receiving light or severe defoliation.

Foliage architecture explains oviposition preference of spruce budworm (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) for white spruce over balsam fir

2006 ◽  
Vol 138 (2) ◽  
pp. 198-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary G. Grant
Keyword(s):  
Picea Glauca ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Oviposition Preference ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Spatial Arrangement ◽  
Balsam Fir

AbstractI conducted dual-choice oviposition bioassays to test the hypothesis that spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clemens), prefer the foliage architecture (spatial arrangement of foliage needles) of white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss; Pinaceae) to that of balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) P. Mill.; Pinaceae). Needles of white spruce radiate around the twig axis, giving the foliage a round architecture. Needles of balsam fir typically radiate bilaterally from the twig axis, giving the foliage a flat architecture, although on some trees foliage needles radiate around the twig axis, giving the foliage a round architecture. In bioassays, females showed a 2.4:1 preference for white spruce over "flat" balsam fir foliage, but this preference was reduced significantly to a 1.2:1 ratio when balsam fir had a round architecture. Given a choice between "round" and "flat" balsam fir foliage, females preferred the "round" foliage by a 2.2:1 margin. A similar preference for the round architecture was also observed when artificial (plastic) foliage with the two types of needle arrangements were compared. I conclude that the spatial arrangement of foliage needles is a major factor responsible for the oviposition preference of spruce budworm for white spruce over balsam fir.

scholarly journals Forest Succession Following a Spruce Budworm Outbreak in Minnesota

1985 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 75-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold O. Batzer ◽  
Michael P. Popp
Keyword(s):  
Forest Succession ◽  
Choristoneura Fumiferana ◽  
Abies Balsamea ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Spruce Budworm ◽  
White Spruce ◽  
Balsam Fir ◽  
Red Maple ◽  
Shrub Species ◽  
Before And After

Plots in 24 spruce-fir stands in northeastern Minnesota studied throughout the period 1957 to 1962 at the time of a spruce budworm outbreak were remeasured in 1979. Composition of the overstory changed from an average of 79% of the basal area in host species before to 31% after the budworm outbreak. Twelve percent of the stands showed growth in nonhost species that more than offset the loss in balsam fir and white spruce. The understory was minimally stocked with balsam fir in two-thirds of the stands. Only 4% of the regeneration was spruce. Even so, some well-established white spruce seedlings were found in two-thirds of the stands. Red maple was the most abundant hardwood invader. Raspberry, hazel and mountain maple were the principal shrub species limiting balsam fir reproduction Shrubs were most abundant in stands where balsam fir mortality had exceeded 80%. Half of the stands had seedlings that originated both before and after the outbreak; 45% had seedlings that originated only after the outbreak; and 5% had seedlings that originated only before the outbreak. Stands having moderate mixture of nonhost species in the over-story prior to the budworm outbreak had the most balsam fir regeneration. This resulted from seed produced by surviving balsam fir trees after the outbreak. Key words: Choristoneura fumiferana, Abies balsamea, Balsam fir, spruce-fir shrubs

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