scholarly journals Minimum Winter Temperature as a Limiting Factor of the Potential Spread of Agrilus planipennis, an Alien Pest of Ash Trees, in Europe

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina J. Orlova-Bienkowskaja ◽  
Andrzej O. Bieńkowski

The emerald ash borer, EAB (Agrilus planipennis) is a devastating alien pest of ash trees. It is spreading in European Russia and Ukraine and will appear in other European countries. Our aim was to determine the regions of Europe where the winter temperature drops low enough to prevent A. planipennis establishment. We calculated the minimum daily air temperature from 2003–2019 for each grid square (0.5° × 0.5°) in East Asia, North America and Europe and determined the minimum daily temperature in the grid squares where A. planipennis was recorded. Temperatures of −30 to −33 °C occur in the northern portions of the pest range on all continents. No established population has been recorded in localities where temperatures below −34 °C occur. This temperature is close to the absolute supercooling point of A. planipennis larva (−35.3 °C). It is unlikely that low temperatures could prevent the spread of A. planipennis in northern Western Europe (Sweden, Norway, Finland, etc.), since the temperature in this area did not fall to −34 °C from 2003–2019. However, such temperatures are not rare in eastern European Russia (Kostroma, Vologda, Orenburg regions, etc.), where Fraxinus pennsylvanica and F. excelsior occur. These regions could potentially become refuges for these ash species.

Insects ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Drogvalenko ◽  
Orlova-Bienkowskaja ◽  
Bieńkowski

Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) is a devastating invasive pest of ash trees. This wood-boring insect is native to Asia and established in European Russia about 20 years ago. It severely damages Fraxinus pennsylvanica plantations and quickly spreads. In 2019 we first detected A. planipennis in Ukraine. More than 20 larvae were collected from under the bark of F. pennsylvanica trees on 5 September 2019 in the Markivka District of the Luhansk Region. The coordinates of the localities of collection were 49.614991 N, 39.559743 E; 49.614160 N, 39.572402 E; and 49.597043 N, 39.561811 E. The photos of the damaged trees with larval galleries, exit holes and larvae are presented. It indicates that A. planipennis is established in the east of Ukraine. This fact is important for development of quarantine protocols to prevent or at least slow the further spread of this invasive pest in Europe.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina J. Orlova-Bienkowskaja ◽  
Alexander N. Drogvalenko ◽  
Ilya A. Zabaluev ◽  
Alexey S. Sazhnev ◽  
Elena Y. Peregudova ◽  
...  

AbstractContextThe first detection of A. planipennis in European Russia was in Moscow in 2003, when it began to spread.AimTo determine the range of A. planipennis as of 2020.MethodsIn 2017-2020, our Russian-Ukrainian research team examined >7000 F. pennsylvanica trees and >2500 F. excelsior trees in 84 localities of European Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.ResultsThe current range exceeds the area of Spain and includes the Luhansk region of Ukraine and 16 regions of ER: Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga, Kursk, Lipetsk, Moscow, Orel, Ryazan, Smolensk, Tambov, Tula, Tver, Vladimir, Volgograd, Voronezh, and Yaroslavl. Agrilus planipennis was not detected in Belarus. The overwhelming majority of the infestations were found on F. pennsylvanica. All known cases of infestation of the native species (F. excelsior) are from artificial plantings.ConclusionAgrilus planipennis will appear in other European countries soon and damage F. pennsylvanica. Further surveys are necessary to determine whether A. planipennis infests F. excelsior in forests.


Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 691
Author(s):  
Mark G. Volkovitsh ◽  
Andrzej O. Bieńkowski ◽  
Marina J. Orlova-Bienkowskaja

Emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis, native to East Asia, is an invasive pest of ash in North America and European Russia. This quarantine species is a threat to ash trees all over Europe. Survey in ten provinces of European Russia in 2019–2020 showed that EAB had spread faster and farther than was previously thought. The new infested sites were first detected in St. Petersburg (110–120 km from the EU border: Estonia, Finland) and Astrakhan Province (50 km from the Kazakhstan border). The current range of EAB in Europe includes Luhansk Province of Ukraine and 18 provinces of Russia: Astrakhan, Belgorod, Bryansk, Kaluga, Kursk, Lipetsk, Moscow, Orel, Ryazan, Smolensk, St. Petersburg, Tambov, Tula, Tver, Vladimir, Volgograd, Voronezh, and Yaroslavl. Within these, only seven quarantine phytosanitary zones in five provinces are declared by the National Plant Protection Organization of Russia. EAB was not found in the regions along the Middle Volga: Mari El, Chuvash and Tatarstan republics, Nizhny Novgorod, Samara and Saratov provinces. The infested sites in St. Petersburg and in the Lower Volga basin are range enclaves separated from the core invasion range by 470 and 370 km, correspondingly. It is possible that new enclaves can appear in the cities of Eastern Europe and Kazakhstan far from the current known range. All previously known infestations in European Russia were in green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica), which was introduced from North America, and individual trees of European ash (F. excelsior). A first confirmed case of mass decline of several thousand of EAB-infested European ash trees in Moscow province is provided. Therefore, there is no more doubt that under certain conditions EAB can seriously damage native ash trees in European forests.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrzej Bieńkowski ◽  
Marina Orlova-Bienkowskaja

Woolly ash aphid or ash leaf curl aphid Prociphilus fraxinifolii (Riley, 1879) is an alien invasive pest of ash trees native to North America. After its first record in Europe in 2003 in Hungary it has spread to the Ukraine, Serbia, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Spain, Poland and Germany. In 2016 P. fraxinifolii was firstly recorded at the southwestern border of Russia. Now Prociphilus fraxinifolii is firstly recorded in the center of European Russia, namely in Moscow Region, which is more than 700 km far from all other known localities of the species. In September 2017 five groups of ash trees (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) with colonies of Prociphilus fraxinifolii were found in Moscow Region. The example of Prociphilus fraxinifolii shows that alien pest insects can spread in Europe very quickly. Now Moscow region is the only regions of Europe, where the expanding range of Prociphilus fraxinifolii has overlapped with expanding ranges of other invasive alien species established in Europe in the last 20 years and severely damaging ash trees: ash dieback fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus Baral et al., 2014 (Ascomycota) and emerald ash borer Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire, 1888 (Coleoptera: Buprestidae).


Author(s):  
Alexander N. Drogvalenko ◽  
Marina J. Orlova-Bienkowskaja ◽  
Andrzej O. Bieńkowski

Agrilus planipennis is a devastating invasive pest of ash trees. This wood-boring insect native to Asia and established in European Russia about 20 years ago poses a serious threat to ash trees all over Europe. In 2019 we first detected Agrilus planipennis in Ukraine. More than 20 larvae have been collected from under the bark of Fraxinus pennsylvanica trees on 5 September 2019 in Markivka District of Luhansk Region. Coordinates of the localities of collection: 49.614991 N, 39.559743 E; 49.614160 N, 39.572402 E and 49.597043 N, 39.561811 E. The photos of damaged trees with larval galleries, exit holes and larvae are presented. There is no doubt that the pest is established in Ukraine. This fact is important for development of quarantine protocols to prevent or at least slow the further spread of this invasive pest in Europe.


2020 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina J. Orlova-Bienkowskaja ◽  
Alexander N. Drogvalenko ◽  
Ilya A. Zabaluev ◽  
Alexey S. Sazhnev ◽  
Elena Y. Peregudova ◽  
...  

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 262
Author(s):  
Molly A. Robinett ◽  
Therese M. Poland ◽  
Deborah G. McCullough

Emerald ash borer (EAB), (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire), first identified in 2002 in southeast Michigan, has caused catastrophic ash (Fraxinus spp.) mortality in forests within the core of the invasion and has spread to 35 states and five Canadian provinces. Little is known about persistence and densities of EAB populations in post-invasion sites after most ash trees have died. We monitored EAB populations from 2014 to 2016 using double decker (DD) traps set in the midst of white ash (F. americana) trees in 30 post-invasion sites in southeast and south-central Michigan. Two DD traps were deployed at each site. One trap had a dark green upper prism and light purple lower prism, both baited with cis-3-hexenol lures. The other had two dark purple prisms baited with cis-3-hexenol on the upper prism and Manuka oil on the lower prism. In 2014 and 2016, size and condition of ash trees were recorded and area of live white ash phloem was estimated in an 18-m-radius plot centered around each of the DD traps. Area of live white ash phloem per site ranged from approximately 24 to 421 m2 in 2014 and from 24 to 411 m2 in 2016. Canopy condition of live white ash trees generally improved; 65% and 89% of the trees had healthy canopies (<20% dieback) in 2014 and 2016, respectively. Traps in 28, 29 and 30 of the sites captured a total of 580, 585, and 932 EAB adults in 2014–2016, respectively. Area of live ash phloem explained relatively little of the variation in total EAB captures in all three years. Low trap catches, along with relatively stable canopy conditions and continued abundance of live white ash, indicate that EAB populations remain below the carrying capacity of the sites, and ash phloem availability is not a limiting factor for EAB abundance. Further monitoring to track both EAB dynamics and tree condition is needed to determine the long-term outlook for white ash in these sites.


2020 ◽  
Vol 93 (2) ◽  
pp. 326-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ute Hoyer-Tomiczek ◽  
Gernot Hoch

Abstract Early detection of infestation by the emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis is extremely difficult; hence developing additional methods is desirable. We built on the successful use of canine scent detection for the invasive long-horned beetles Anoplophora glabripennis and Anoplophora chinensis and trained six dogs in detection of EAB. A first test series was performed to evaluate detection accuracy of five of these dogs. Seven different experimental settings were tested under single blind conditions: (1) forest nursery, (2) piles of firewood, (3) firewood on the ground, (4) ash logs on the ground, (5) old urban ash trees, (6) urban forest with ash trees and (7) natural forest with ash trees. In total, 214 positive samples were presented to the dogs, out of which 20 remained undetected. The experiments ascertained sensitivity (correct positives of all positives) ranging from 73.3 to 100 percent and specificity (correct negatives of all negatives) from 88.9 to 99.8 percent in the tested settings. This initial study demonstrates that trained dogs are able to detect EAB scent from sources such as larval galleries in bark/wood, frass, living or dead larvae or dead dry beetles. The numbers of tested dogs and test series were limited, and further studies are needed to confirm the initial results. However, the preliminary findings demonstrate the potential of the method particularly for inspection of wood or plants at entry points.


2016 ◽  
Vol 42 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Tanis ◽  
Deborah McCullough

Emerald ash borer (EAB) (Agrilus planipennis), first identified near Detroit, Michigan, U.S., in 2002, has killed millions of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) in 28 states and two Canadian provinces to date. Trunk injections of insecticide products containing emamectin benzoate (EB) (e.g., TREE-ageR) are often used to protect ash trees in landscapes from EAB, but wounds and potential injury resulting from injections are a concern. Researchers examined 507 injection sites on 61 trees and recorded evidence of secondary wounding (e.g., external bark cracks, internal xylem necrosis and pathogen infection). Researchers assessed 233 injection sites on 22 green ash and 24 white ash trees macro-injected with a low or a medium-high rate of EB in 2008 only, or in both 2008 and 2009. Only 12 of 233 injection sites (5%) were associated with external bark cracks and there was no evidence of pathogen infection. On 39 of the 46 trees (85%), new xylem was growing over injection sites. Researchers assessed 274 injection sites on 15 green ash trees injected annually with EB from 2008 to 2013 or injected in 2008 and again in 2011. Bark cracks were associated with four injection sites on three trees, but no evidence of injury was found on the other 12 trees. All 15 trees had new xylem laid over injection sites. Confocal laser scanning and polarizing digital microscopy were used to assess the integrity of discolored xylem tissue removed from the immediate area surrounding 140 injection sites on 61 trees. Researchers found no evidence of decay associated with discoloration.


Author(s):  
Deborah G McCullough

Abstract Emerald ash borer (EAB) (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire), discovered in southeastern Michigan, USA in 2002, has become the most destructive and costly invasive forest insect in North America. This phloem-boring beetle has also invaded Moscow, Russia and continued spread of EAB potentially threatens European ash (Fraxinus spp.) species. This review summarizes EAB life history, including interspecific variation in host preference, invasion impacts and challenges of detecting new infestations and provides an overview of available management tactics. Advances in systemic insecticides, particularly emamectin benzoate products applied via trunk injection, have yielded effective and practical options both to protect individual trees and to slow EAB population growth and ash decline on an area-wide basis without disrupting natural enemies. Economic costs of treating ash are substantially lower than removal costs, retain ecosystem services provided by the trees, reduce sociocultural impacts and conserve genetic diversity in areas invaded by EAB. Girdled ash trees are highly attractive to EAB adults in low-density populations and debarking small girdled trees to locate larval galleries is the most effective EAB detection method. An array of woodpeckers, native larval parasitoids and introduced parasitoids attack EAB life stages but mortality is highly variable. Area-wide management strategies that integrate insecticide-treated trees, girdled ash trap trees and biological control can be adapted for local conditions to slow and reduce EAB impacts.


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