#pine beetle

[pine-beetle]

Some prints i made this week!! A pine beetle and a weevil. A few people asked me why I made pine beetle prints, bc they’re so bad for the environment, and I kinda forgot the reason. Awareness I guess?

[spindlyspidercat]

finally back from vacation again

heres a pine beetle

[earthstory]

THE BLACK HILLS AND THE MOUNTAIN PINE BEETLE—SOUTH DAKOTA AND WYOMING

The Black Hills National Forest is located in western South Dakota and northeastern Wyoming. This majestic landform is visible from many roadways in South Dakota because the hills are 201 kilometers (125 miles) long and 105 kilometers (65 miles) wide. The hills were named by the Lakota, who dubbed the area “Paha Sapa;” this means “hills that are black.” The hills’ characteristic color is created by the pine trees that dot the terrain. However, these trees are temporarily dwindling due to a small menace that is taking over: the mountain pine beetle.

The pine trees that populate the Black Hills are under attack by the mountain pine beetle. The beetle is actually native to the Black Hills. It spends most of its life in the inner bark of trees, and favors the ponderosa pine tree, which grows on more than one million acres of the Black Hills; however, other pine tree species are also vulnerable to the beetle. Most of their feeding and movement from tree to tree occurs in June and July, when adults move to new trees in order to lay eggs by tunneling into the trees. The tunneling by the beetles disrupts the trees from transporting nutrients and food between their needles and roots. Adult beetles may also carry a fungus that can stop water from moving throughout the tree. The beetles are especially prevalent now because they are in an abundant life cycle. Normally, the beetles only colonize stressed or weakened trees during their periods of smaller populations. Every ten years, their population flourishes so that healthy trees are also colonized; this is now occurring over many sections of the Black Hills.

Approximately one-third of the National Forest Service trees that grow on the Black Hills landscape have been destroyed by the beetle during this life cycle. That corresponds to roughly 384,000 acres out of 1.2 million acres of forested land. Not only is losing the forest to the beetles devastating from an emotional standpoint; the loss of trees could have a negative effect on tourism in the area (which is home to Mount Rushmore). In addition, dead and dying trees in the area could become fuel for wildfires. However, these standing dead trees, called snags, can provide habitat for many organisms.

Over the past two years, over 240,000 acres of the region have been inspected for mountain pine beetles, since most people in the region view the beetle as a menace. I was in the Black Hills in August and the sparser network of trees is noticeable, even while one is driving on the highway. Eventually, I would like to visit the area again and see the trees back to their healthy numbers when the beetle population has dwindled again.

-Jeanne K.

Photo of insect damage in the Deerfield Lake area of the Black Hills National Forest, courtesy of Gary Chancey, Black Hills National Forest.

References: http://www.fs.usda.gov/blackhills

http://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/blackhills/home/?cid=stelprdb5110568

http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/pine-beetles-in-the-black-hills

http://www.newscenter1.tv/stories/14236.aspx

http://sdda.sd.gov/conservation-forestry/identification-biology/

[outdoortraveler]

Governor Polis Shares Information on Pine Beetle Outbreak, Announces New Task Force to Help Communities, Forests, and Water Resources

Today, Governor Jared Polis, joined by forestry experts, local leaders, and partners across key sectors, shared information on the major pin

[greaterpatchoguecom]

Long Island groups effectively cull pine beetle infestation over four years

Long Island groups effectively cull pine beetle infestation over four years

A collaborative effort has helped combat the spread of the environmentally dangerous southern pine beetle on eastern Long island.

And at its peak, the beetle had infested over 1,500 trees, mainly in the Pine Barrens area.

The locally invasive beetle, which burrows into pine for survival purposes, eventually kills off the tree, which disrupts the local ecosystem, according to the DEC. (more…)

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[earthgenconservation]

Mathematics used to study pine beetle control methods

The research found one of the control methods used, pheromone baiting, may actually help increase beetle populations.

Study shows pheromone baiting attracts more beetles to area than what is caught in traps. AKA definitely not helping trees from pests. this is a reforestation concern, and those who grow forest produce/lumber. Pheromone baiting is not the solution!

[duskwire]

We Survived the Fire, Only to Be Eaten by the Bugs

[theecoreport]

Growth Of BC Forests Should Out-Pace Pine Beetle Losses By 2020

Growth Of BC Forests Should Out-Pace Pine Beetle Losses By 2020

The ECOreport reposts study that growth of BC forests should out-pace pine beetle losses by 2020

Originally Published on University of Victoria News

In a rare bit of good climate change news, scientists have found that trees are growing faster in British Columbia due to global warming, and this is starting to counter the carbon-loss impacts of the province’s devastating mountain pine beetle (MPB)…

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