Container Wall Porosity and Root Pruning Influence on Swietenia mahogani Root Ball Architecture and Anchorage After Planting

The emerald ash borer (EAB), first discovered in North America in Michigan in 2002, continues to expand its distributional range. Early detection of EAB remains a major caveat in efforts to implement proactive management strategies. Past reports have shown that ash trees infested with EAB have an increased risk of branch failure and other symptoms associated with tree decline. Therefore, early detection efforts could be improved if a suite of tree symptoms—prior to visible signs of EAB infestation—can be identified. Researchers initiated a four-year study in Ohio, U.S. (2009– 2012) to investigate and document symptoms associated with the EAB–ash tree complex in urban sites. The prior history of EAB at the study sites ranged from ash trees with no visible evidence of infestation to those that were infested for more than two years. In trees shown to be recently colonized by EAB, visible signs of infestation, such as adult emergence holes, presence of EAB galleries, bark loss, and canopy loss were not always apparent. However, in EAB-positive trees, there was a significant tendency for the presence of cracks in scaffold branches, branch fractures within the upper canopy, and branch fractures specifically located closer to the union with the stem as opposed to at the branch tip or at the branch’s center of gravity. This study highlights tree symptoms associated with the initial colonization of EAB when host trees are still apparently healthy, which could greatly facilitate future detection efforts for EAB.

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Challenges, tactics and integrated management of emerald ash borer in North America

Forestry An International Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1093/forestry/cpz049 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Deborah G McCullough

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Integrated Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Interspecific Variation ◽

Agrilus Planipennis ◽

Local Conditions ◽

Ash Trees ◽

Invasion Impacts ◽

Individual Trees

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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Review of the emerald ash borer (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), life history, mating behaviours, host plant selection, and host resistance

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/tce.2015.4 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 147 (3) ◽

pp. 252-262 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Therese M. Poland ◽

Yigen Chen ◽

Jennifer Koch ◽

Deepa Pureswaran

Keyword(s):

Life History ◽

Host Plant ◽

Host Resistance ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

The United States ◽

Agrilus Planipennis ◽

Host Plant Selection ◽

Plant Selection ◽

Ash Trees

AbstractAs of summer 2014, the invasive emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), has become established in 24 states in the United States of America and has killed tens of millions of ash trees since its introduction into Michigan in the 1990s. Considerable research has been conducted on many aspects of EAB life history, natural history, ecology, and management strategies in an attempt to contain this devastating pest. In this article, we review the life history, mating behaviours, and host plant selection by EAB in North America as well as host resistance to EAB attack.

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A Borer-Specific Assessment Scheme for Identifying Sentinel Trees to Delimit Invasive Borers in Urban Forests

Arboriculture & Urban Forestry ◽

10.48044/jauf.2015.013 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 41 (3) ◽

Author(s):

Gabriel Hughes ◽

Clifford Sadof ◽

Matthew Ginzel

Keyword(s):

Early Detection ◽

Urban Forest ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Agrilus Planipennis ◽

Street Tree ◽

Ash Trees ◽

Pest Incidence ◽

Specific Assessment ◽

Wood Borer ◽

Wood Boring

Aggressive insects like the emerald ash borer [Agrilus planipennis (Fairmaire)] (EAB) increasingly threaten the health of the urban forest. Early detection of exotic wood-boring pests is critical for rapid response efforts, and allows for effective management while populations are relatively low. During street tree inventories, arborists record subjective rankings of tree condition and pest incidence; however, the extent of insect attack is rarely quantified. Moreover, it is unknown how the assessment of tree vigor provided by city foresters during these inventories relates to the likelihood of wood-borer infestation. In this study, researchers developed a borer-specific tree vigor assessment scheme to rapidly evaluate street trees, and to identify when EAB populations begin to grow exponentially based on the health of the forest. This scheme incorporates common indicators of EAB attack, including canopy thinning and epicormic sprouts, as well as attack by common native wood-boring insects. This scheme was used to track the health of ash trees from 2010 to 2013 in one urban forest with advanced symptoms of EAB decline and one without (Indianapolis and Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., respectively). Trees declined more rapidly in Indianapolis where emergence holes from native borers were positively correlated with EAB in infested areas. Over the course of the study, first detections of EAB occurred on progressively weaker trees at both sites, suggesting that early detection of incipient EAB populations can be improved by surveying apparently healthy trees.

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THE EARLY DETECTION OF THE EMERALD ASH BORER (EAB) USING MULTI-SOURCE REMOTELY SENSED DATA

ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences ◽

10.5194/isprs-archives-xlii-3-553-2018 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol XLII-3 ◽

pp. 553-557

Author(s):

B. Hu ◽

F. Naveed ◽

F. Tasneem ◽

C. Xing

Keyword(s):

Early Detection ◽

Spatial Resolution ◽

High Spatial Resolution ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Lidar Data ◽

Health State ◽

Individual Tree ◽

Ash Trees ◽

Individual Trees ◽

Combine Information

The objectives of this study were to exploit the synergy of hyperspectral imagery, Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR) and high spatial resolution data and their synergy in the early detection of the EAB (Emerald Ash Borer) presence in trees within urban areas and to develop a framework to combine information extracted from multiple data sources. To achieve these, an object-oriented framework was developed to combine information derived from available data sets to characterize ash trees. Within this framework, an advanced individual tree delineation method was developed to delineate individual trees using the combined high-spatial resolution worldview-3 imagery was used together with LiDAR data. Individual trees were then classified to ash and non-ash trees using spectral and spatial information. In order to characterize the health state of individual ash trees, leaves from ash trees with various health states were sampled and measured using a field spectrometer. Based on the field measurements, the best indices that sensitive to leaf chlorophyll content were selected. The developed framework and methods were tested using worldview-3, airborne LiDAR data over the Keele campus of York University Toronto Canada. Satisfactory results in terms of individual tree crown delineation, ash tree identification and characterization of the health state of individual ash trees. Quantitative evaluations is being carried out.

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Oral Ingestion of Bacterially Expressed dsRNA Can Silence Genes and Cause Mortality in a Highly Invasive, Tree-Killing Pest, the Emerald Ash Borer

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects11070440 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 440 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ramya Shanivarsanthe Leelesh ◽

Lynne K. Rieske

Keyword(s):

Insect Pests ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Coli Strain ◽

Forest Pest ◽

E Coli ◽

Naturally Occurring ◽

Invasive Tree ◽

Ash Trees ◽

Rnai Response

RNA interference (RNAi) is a naturally occurring process inhibiting gene expression, and recent advances in our understanding of the mechanism have allowed its development as a tool against insect pests. A major challenge for deployment in the field is the development of convenient and efficient methods for production of double stranded RNA (dsRNA). We assessed the potential for deploying bacterially produced dsRNA as a bio-pesticide against an invasive forest pest, the emerald ash borer (EAB). EAB feeds on the cambial tissue of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.), causing rapid death. EAB has killed millions of trees in North America since its discovery in 2002, prompting the need for innovative management strategies. In our study, bacterial expression and synthesis of dsRNA were performed with E. coli strain HT115 using the L4440 expression vector. EAB-specific dsRNAs (shi and hsp) over-expressed in E. coli were toxic to neonate EAB after oral administration, successfully triggering gene silencing and subsequent mortality; however, a non-specific dsRNA control was not included. Our results suggest that ingestion of transformed E. coli expressing dsRNAs can induce an RNAi response in EAB. To our knowledge, this is the first example of an effective RNAi response induced by feeding dsRNA-expressing bacteria in a forest pest.

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Detection and sampling of emerald ash borer (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) infestations

The Canadian Entomologist ◽

10.4039/tce.2015.7 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 147 (3) ◽

pp. 290-299 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

Krista Ryall

Keyword(s):

Early Detection ◽

Cost Benefit Analysis ◽

Spatial Scales ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Signs And Symptoms ◽

Agrilus Planipennis ◽

Larval Feeding ◽

Sampling Protocols ◽

Tools And Techniques

AbstractEmerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (EAB) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), has caused devastating levels of mortality to ash trees (Fraxinus Linnaeus, Oleaceae) in North America. Early infestations of this insect are extremely difficult to detect due to cryptic larval feeding and lack of obvious signs or symptoms of initial attack. Considerable research has been conducted to develop tools and techniques aimed towards providing early detection and delimitation of populations of this invasive species. Sampling tools and techniques include: (1) relating visual signs and symptoms to the presence of EAB infestations; (2) use of girdled trap-trees to increase captures of adults and subsequent larval densities; (3) sub-sampling protocols to detect larvae under the bark based on their within-tree distribution; (4) artificial traps baited with pheromones and/or host volatiles attractive to adult EAB; (5) biosurvellience using buprestid-hunting wasps; and (6) remote sensing techniques. Additional research modelling patterns of infestation at the landscape scale indicate very clumped or aggregated distributions, greatly increasing the difficulty of early detection across large spatial scales. Further research is still required to increase the efficacy and efficiency of early detection tools and techniques, including cost/benefit analysis of the various sampling options, increased understanding of patterns of initial infestation across the landscape, development of sampling programs for both detection and delimitation, and development of sequential sampling programs to estimate EAB density. This information will enable foresters to make informed decisions regarding management strategies against this devastating pest.

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Comparing Methods for Monitoring Establishment of the Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis, Coleoptera: Buprestidae) Egg Parasitoid Oobius agrili (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) in Maryland, USA

Forests ◽

10.3390/f9100659 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 9 (10) ◽

pp. 659 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

David Jennings ◽

Jian Duan ◽

Paula Shrewsbury

Keyword(s):

North America ◽

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Egg Parasitoid ◽

Agrilus Planipennis ◽

The State ◽

Future Research ◽

Percent Parasitism ◽

Ash Trees ◽

Study Sites ◽

Invasive Beetle

The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (EAB), is an invasive beetle that has caused widespread mortality of ash trees in North America. To date, four parasitoids have been introduced in North America for EAB biological control, including the egg parasitoid Oobius agrili Zhang & Huang (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae). Monitoring EAB egg parasitism is challenging because female beetles oviposit in bark crevices and EAB eggs and O. agrili are small (<1 mm in diameter). Consequently, multiple methods have been developed to recover this parasitoid. Here we compared two methods, visual surveys and bark sifting, used to monitor establishment of O. agrili in Maryland, USA. From 2009 to 2015, a total of 56,176 O. agrili were released at 32 sites across the state. In 2016, we surveyed nine of the study sites for O. agrili establishment using both methods. We compared the amount of time spent searching for eggs separately in each method, and also analyzed the effects of years-post release, total number of parasitoids released, and median month of release, on percent parasitism of EAB eggs, and the percentage of trees per site with parasitized EAB eggs. We found that visually surveying ash trees for EAB eggs was more efficient than bark sifting; the percent parasitism observed using the two methods was similar, but visually surveying trees was more time-efficient. Both methods indicate that O. agrili can successfully establish populations in Maryland, and June may be the best month to release O. agrili in the state. Future research should investigate EAB phenology in the state to help optimize parasitoid release strategies.

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Can Spathius galinae attack emerald ash borer larvae feeding in large ash trees?

Biological Control ◽

10.1016/j.biocontrol.2017.07.004 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 114 ◽

pp. 8-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Theresa C. Murphy ◽

Roy G. Van Driesche ◽

Juli R. Gould ◽

Joseph S. Elkinton

Keyword(s):

Emerald Ash Borer ◽

Ash Trees

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Non-invasive mid-term ECG monitoring for the detection of atrial fibrillation in an outpatient population

European Heart Journal ◽

10.1093/ehjci/ehaa946.0381 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽

Author(s):

J Cai ◽

K.K Yeo ◽

P Wong ◽

C.K Ching

Keyword(s):

Atrial Fibrillation ◽

Public Institution ◽

First Episode ◽

Prior History ◽

Funding Source ◽

Monitoring Device ◽

Ecg Monitoring ◽

Non Invasive ◽

Increased Risk ◽

The Mean

Abstract Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common arrhythmia with significant morbidity due to an increased risk of ischemic stroke. Outpatient electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring is an integral part of the diagnosis of AF. Conventional 24 hour Holter monitoring can be cumbersome and often fails to diagnose patients with paroxysmal AF. Spyder ECG is a non-invasive ECG monitoring device that allows wireless transmission of ECG information for analysis. It is small and comfortable, allowing for easy application for the screening and detection of AF over a mid-term duration. Purpose This study aims to evaluate the incidence of AF in patients with no prior AF and CHADsVASC score of at least 1 with the use of the Spyder ECG mid-term ECG monitoring device. Methods Patients aged 21 to 85 years old with no prior history of AF and CHADsVASC score of at least 1 were recruited from outpatient clinics of 3 large tertiary hospitals in Singapore from December 2016 to April 2019. Patients wore the Spyder ECG device for up to 2 weeks, during which continuous ECG information was uploaded onto a central cloud database and analysed. Results There were 363 patients recruited. The mean age was 61±10.0 years and 65.1% were male. There were 80.3% Chinese, 11.6% Malay, 7.5% Indian and 20.6% of other races. 68.3% of the patients were non-smokers and 74.0% of them were non-alcohol drinkers. The mean BMI of 25.5±4.7 kg/m2. The patient population had significant co-morbidities. 76.3% of the patients had hypertension, 69.4% of them had hyperlipidemia and 40.5% of them had diabetes mellitus. 10.0% of them had congestive cardiac failure and 56.7% had ischaemic heart disease. 11.3% of patients had a previous stroke and 20.4% had a prior myocardial infarction. 7.8% of the patients had asthma, 5.8% of them had thyroid disease and 9.9% of them had chronic kidney disease. They were monitored for a mean of 5.4±2.9 days each. There were 15 (4.1%) patients in whom AF was detected. The patients with AF wore the device for a mean of 5.7±2.0 SD days. The mean burden of AF was 9.0% of monitored time. 46.7% of the patients with AF had detection of AF on the first day, 26.7% on the second day, 13.3% on the third day and 13.3% on the seventh day. The mean duration of the first episode of AF was 251±325 minutes. 7 out of 15 (46.7%) of patients had first episodes of AF lasting less than 10 minutes. Conclusion Continuous mid-term ECG monitoring was able to detect AF in 15 (4.1%) of a population of 363 patients with no prior AF and CHADsVASC score of at least one, monitored for a mean of 5.4 days. Most episodes (53.3%) of AF were detected after the first day of ECG monitoring. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: Public Institution(s). Main funding source(s): Duke-NUS Medical School Singapore

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