Transcript Ward – Monitoring: Arthropods

SW Jemez Mountains CFLRP:
Monitoring Pest and Beneficial
Invertebrates
Mark Ward, Entomologist
Valles Caldera National Preserve
Monitoring
Objectives
Forest Landscape Restoration Act (PL 11111, Sec. 4003(c)), the natural resources
monitoring program objectives are:
(1) contribute toward the restoration of the
structure and composition of pre-firesuppression old growth stands
(2) reduce the risk of uncharacteristic
wildfire, and/or maintain or re-establish
natural fire regimes
(3) improve fish and wildlife habitat,
including endangered, threatened and
sensitive species
(4) maintain or improve water quality and
watershed function
(5) prevent, remediate, or control invasions
of exotic species
SW Jemez Mountains CFLRP
Restoration treatments should:
• Increase resistance of tree species to insect
pest attacks
• Increase the resilience of forests by increasing
species richness, diversity, and relative
abundances of beneficial invertebrates
Monitoring activities for pest and
beneficial terrestrial invertebrates:
1. Forest pest insect outbreaks
2. Effects on invertebrates after the Las
Conchas fire
3. Paliza prescribed fire treatment
Tony Barber
http://www.polydesmida.info
Mike Quinn
Why monitor invertebrates?
Sally King
Sally King
Deedee
Sally King
Ryan Eide
Sharon Warner
Patrick Edwin Moran
“Invertebrates dominate every global
ecosystem in terms of species richness,
biomass, and ecological function”
Center for Biodiversity and Conservation
of the American Museum of Natural History
www.bugguide.net
M. Ward
Tony Barber
http://www.polydesmida.info
Mike Quinn
Why monitor invertebrates?
They run the world!
Sally King
Sally King
Deedee
Sally King
Ryan Eide
Sharon Warner
Patrick Edwin Moran
Ecosystem Services Provided by Invertebrates
• Diverse ecologies—herbivores, fungivores, detritivores,
predators, parasitoids, carrion-feeders, etc.
• Decomposition of plants and animals
• Occupy all levels of the food chain
• Food for other species
• Natural predators on pest species
• Pollination of native plants
www.bugguide.net
Tony Barber
http://www.polydesmida.info
Mike Quinn
Why monitor invertebrates?
They possess outstanding
qualities for assessing
ecosystem changes
Sally King
Sally King
Deedee
Sally King
Ryan Eide
Sharon Warner
Patrick Edwin Moran
Sampled in large numbers
Rapid population turnover
Rapid dispersal
Photos: Sally King
Tony Barber
http://www.polydesmida.info
Mike Quinn
Why monitor invertebrates?
Sally King
Sally King
Deedee
Some species can cause damage to ecosystems
Sally King
Ryan Eide
Sharon Warner
Patrick Edwin Moran
Monitoring forest insect pests
Annual USFS aerial survey data
Insect Pest
# of
acres/yr
Western Spruce
Budworm
10,205
Bark Beetles
761
Mohawk Ridge, VCNP, Sept 2012
Las Conchas Fire
Valles Caldera National Preserve
June 27, 2011
Monitoring:
Effects of Las Conchas
fire on invertebrates
Photo: J. Dewar
Ground-dwelling
Invertebrates (2011-2014)
36 Pitfall Traps in 3 habitats
MIXED-CONIFER
PONDEROSA PINE
GRASSLANDS
Target Groups
Grasshoppers/Crickets/Beetles
Spiders/Mites (Dr. Sandra Brantley)
Ants (Dr. Robin Verble)
Millipedes (Dr. Michael Medrano)
BURNED
CONTROL
Expected Outcomes
1.
We expect to see significant differences in
species composition and abundance in
burned areas as compared to unburned areas.
2.
We expect grassland invertebrate assemblages
will recover from fire impacts relatively
rapidly (1-3 years), whereas assemblages in
severely burned forest habitats will take a
much longer time to rebound.
Grasshopper/Cricket Conclusions
Grassland orthoptera species negatively impacted
by wildfire recover relatively quickly. Species
positively affected by wildfire (including one pest
species) may persist at elevated levels for longer.
Severely burned mixed-conifer forests appear to
be transitioning into a grassland type habitat
where grasshopper species are becoming more
abundant and more diverse than in unburned
mixed-conifer forests.
Spider Conclusions
3 common families
Wolf spiders (Lycosidae)
Ground spiders (Gnaphosidae)
Crab spiders (Thomisidae)
Fire significantly reduced numbers in forest but not grassland
sites.
Abundance varied greatly in 2012 and 2013, showing weak
but not significant trends away from the 2011 post-fire pattern
(as analyzed by non-metric multidimensional scaling).
Inter-annual variation is high in arthropod abundance; more
time is needed to see if the trend becomes significant. Other
disturbances, such as drought, may delay recovery.
Monitoring the effects
of the Paliza Prescribed Burn
One season of pre-burn invertebrate
monitoring data in Ponderosa Pine and
Pinon-Juniper Habitats
2015 Monitoring
1. Fine tune techniques for monitoring
forest insects pest in different
treatments
2. Continue monitoring Las Conchas
forested sites
3. Begin monitoring post-Paliza Rx Burn