Category: forest pest insects

Bad News & Good News – current situation

  American beech; FT Campbell

 

I recently attended USDA’s annual Interagency Research Forum on Invasive Species in Annapolis, MD,  and have good and bad news to report about forest pests – mostly about insects but also a little on weeds.

Bad News

New pest: The European leaf-mining weevil is killing American beech in Nova Scotia. Jon Sweeney of Natural Resources Canada thinks it could spread throughout the tree species’ range. (I alerted you to another new pest of beech – beech leaf disease – at the beginning of December.  Beech is already hard-hit by beech bark disease.)

New information added in June: according to Meurisse et al. (2018), the weevil overwinters under the bark of beech and trees that are not hosts, so it can be transported by movement of firewood and other forms of unprocessed logs and branches. [Meurisse, N. D. Rassaati, B.P. Hurley, E.G. Brockerhoff, R.A. Haack. 2018. Common Pathways by which NIS forest insects move internationally and domestically. Journal of Pest Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-018-0990-0]

Other bad news concerns the spread of already-established pests:

  1. Hemlock woolly adelgid has been detected in Nova Scotia – where it has probably been present for years.
  2. Emerald ash borer has been detected in Winnipeg, Manitoba – home to an estimated 350,000 ash trees. Winnipeg is 1,300 km (870 miles) from Saulte Ste. Marie, the closest Canadian outbreak. The closest U.S. outbreak is in Duluth, Minnesota — 378 miles.
  3. Despite strenuous efforts by Pennsylvania (supported, but not adequately, by APHIS), (see my blog from last February ), spotted lanternfly has been detected in Delaware, New York, and Virginia. A map showing locations of apple orchards in the Winchester, Virginia area is available here.
  4. There is continued lack of clarity about biology and impact of velvet longhorned beetle (see my blog from last February.) The Utah population appears to be growing. APHIS is funding efforts to develop trapping tools to monitor the species.
  5. Alerted at the Forum, I investigated a disease on oak trees caused by the pathogen Diplodia corticola. Already recorded in Florida, California, Massachusetts and Maine, last year the disease was also detected in West Virginia. Forest pathologists Danielle Martin and Matt Kasson don’t expect this disease to cause widespread mortality. However, they do expect it to weaken oaks and increase their vulnerability to other threats.

spread of laurel wilt disease

Laurel wilt disease is one of the worst of the established non-native pests. Two speakers at the Forum described its ecological impacts.

Dr. John Riggins of the University of Mississippi reported that 24 native herbivorous insects are highly dependent on plants vulnerable to the laurel wilt insect-pathogen complex. One of these, the Palamedes swallowtail butterfly (Papilio palamedes) has suffered a three-fold to seven-fold decline in populations at study sites after the death of redbay caused by laurel wilt.

Dr. Frank Koch of the USDA Forest Service expects that the disease will spread throughout most of the range of another host, sassafras. (See a map of the plant’s range). With the climate changing, the insect is unlikely to suffer winter cold mortality in the heart of the tree’s range in Kentucky, West Virginia, and Virginia.

Apparently many birds depend on spicebush, a shrub in the Lauraceae family, but there is no easily available data on any changes to its distribution or health.

 

Good News

Other speakers at the Forum provided encouraging information.

Scientists described progress on breeding American elm trees resistant to or tolerant of the introduced Dutch elm disease (DED). USFS scientists led by James Slavicek and Kathleen Knight are trying to improve the genetic diversity and form of disease-tolerant American elms and to develop strategies for restoring them to the forest.

More than 70 seedlings planted in an orchard are being inoculated with the DED pathogen to test the trees’ tolerance. The project continues to collect seeds or cuttings from apparently resistant or tolerant trees. If you are aware of a large surviving elm in a natural setting (not urban planting), please contact the program via its website.

The project is also experimenting with methods for restoring trees in the forest. In one such experiment, elms, sycamores, and pin oaks have been planted at sites in Ohio where openings had been created by the death of ash attacked by emerald ash borer. Survival of the elm seedlings has been promising.

 

Also, there is cause to be optimistic re:

  1. Walnut / thousand cankers disease

In the East, walnut trees appear to recover from thousand cankers disease. One factor, according to Matt Ginzel of Purdue University, is that the thousand canker disease fungus, Geosmithia morbida, is a weak annual canker that would not cause branch or tree mortality in the absence of mass attack by the walnut twig beetle. Another factor is the greater reliability of precipitation in the East. Dr. Ginzel is now studying whether mass attack by the beetle is sufficient – alone – to kill walnut trees.

 

  1. b) Sirex noctilio

In Ontario, Laurel Haavik, U.S. Forest Service, finds both low impacts (so far) and evidence of resistance in some pine trees.

 

Also, scientists are making progress in developing tools for detecting and combatting highly damaging pests.

  1. Richard Stouthammer of U.C. Riverside has detected an effective chemical attractant for use in monitoring polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers.  He is testing other pheromones that could improve the attractant’s efficacy. He has also detected some chemicals that apparently repel the beetles. His colleague, pathologist Akiv Eskalen, is testing endophytes that attack the beetles’ Fusarium fungus.
  2. Several scientists are identifying improved techniques for surveillance trapping for wood-boring beetles. These include Jon Sweeney of Natural Resources Canada and Jeremy Allison of the Great Lakes Forestry Centre.

 

Progress has also been made in biocontrol programs targetting non-native forest pests.

  1. Winter moth

Joseph Elkington of the University of Massachusetts reports success following 12 years of releases of the Cyzenis moth – a classical biocontrol agent that co-evolved with the winter moth in Europe. The picture is complex since the moths are eaten by native species of insects and small mammals and parasitized by a native wasp. However, native predators didn’t control the winter moth when it first entered Massachusetts.

2) Emerald ash borer

Jian Duan of the Agriculture Research Service reported that biocontrol agents targeting the  are having an impact on beetle densities in Michigan, where several parasitoids were released in 2007 to 2010. The larval parasitoid Tetrasrticus planipennisi appears to be having the greatest impact. A survey of ash saplings at these sites in 2015 found that more than 70% lacked fresh EAB galleries. In other trees, larval density was very low – a level of attack that Duan thinks the trees can survive.

However, Tetrasrticus has a short ovipositor so it is unlikely to be able to reach EAB larvae in larger trees with thicker bark. Furthermore, most of the biocontrol agents were collected at about 40o North latitude. It is unclear whether they will be as successful in controlling EAB outbreaks farther South.

Consequently, Duan noted the need to expand the rearing and release of a second, larger braconid wasp Spathius galinae, continue exploration in the southern and western edges of the EAB native range for new parasitoids; and continue work to determine the role of the egg parasitoids.

A brochure describing the U.S. EAB biocontrol program is available here

Canada began its EAB biocontrol program in 2013, using parasitoids raised by USDA APHIS. While evaluating the efficacy of these releases, Canada is also testing whether biocontrol can protect street trees.

3) Hemlock woolly adelgid

Scientists have been searching for a suite of biocontrol agents to control HWA for 25 years. Scientists believe that they need two sets of agents – those that will feed on the adelgid during spring/summer and those that will feed on HWA during winter/spring.

The first agent, Sasajiscymnus tsugae, was released in large numbers beginning in 1995. It is easy to rear. However, there are questions regarding its establishment and impact.

Laricobius nigrinus – a winter/spring feeder from the Pacific Northwest – was released beginning in 2003. It is widely established, especially in warmer areas. A related beetle, L. osakensis, was discovered in a part of Japan where eastern North American populations of HWA originated. Releases started in 2012. Scientists are hopeful that this beetle will prove more effective than some of the other biocontrol agents.

Winter cold snaps in the Northeast have killed HWA. While HWA populations often rebound quickly, predatory insects might suffer longer-term mortality. This risk intensifies the importance of finding agents that attack HWA during the spring or summer. Two new agents – the silver flies Leucopis artenticollis and L. piniperda – may be able to fill this niche. Both are from the Pacific Northwest. Initial releases have established populations.

 

4) USDA scientists are at earlier stages of actively seeking and testing possible biocontrol agents targetting Asian longhorned beetle and spotted lanternfly.

 

5) Invasive Plant Management

A study in New York City shows that invasive plant removal can have lasting effects. Lea Johnson  of the University of Maryland studied vegetation dynamics in urban forest patches in New York City. Her publications are available here.

In the 1980s New York undertook large scale restoration of its parks, including removal of invasive plants – especially multiflora rose, porcelainberry (Ampelopsis) and oriental bittersweet (Celastris). The goal was to establish self-sustaining forest with regeneration of native species. In 2006, Dr. Johnson was asked to evaluate the parks’ vegetation. She compared restored sites and similar sites without restoration.

I find it promising that Dr. Johnson found persistent differences in forest structure and composition as much as 15 or 20 years after restoration was undertaken. Treated sites had significantly lower invasive species abundance, a more complex forest structure, and greater native tree recruitment.

Still, shade intolerant species were abundant on all sites. The native shade tolerant species that had been planted did not do as well because gaps in the canopy persist.

 

CONCLUSIONS

As always, the annual Interagency Research Forum on Invasive Species provides an excellent opportunity to get an overview of non-native pest threats to America’s forests and the ever-wider range of scientists’ efforts to combat those threats. Presenters from universities as well as USDA, Canadian, and state agencies describe the status of host tree and pest species, advance promising technologies for detection, monitoring and control, and – increasingly – strategies for predicting potential pests’ likely impact. The networking opportunities are unparalleled.

 

Posted by Faith Campbell

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

 

What Is USDA Waiting For?

 

As I wrote in my blog in October, the Department of Homeland Security Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has reversed a previous policy and now has the option to impose a financial penalty on importers when any of their shipments does not comply with the international standard for wood packaging (International Standard for Phytosanitary Measure Number 15 – or ISPM#15). The penalties are assessed under Custom’s authority per Title 19 United States Code (USC) § 1595a(b) or 19 USC § 1592.

The Department of Agriculture has its own legal authority to penalize shippers whose wood packaging violates regulations implementing ISPM#15.  However, USDA not taken the equivalent step of using its own authority to crack down on violators. Why not?

APHIS’ legal authority stems from the Plant Protection Act of 2000 [7 U.S.C. §7701, et seq. (2000)] (The text is posted here)

This law provides broad authority to APHIS to penalize non-compliant importers, using both civil and criminal penalties. Under Section 7734 (b):

“Any person that violates this chapter … may, after notice and opportunity for a hearing on the record, be assessed a civil penalty by the Secretary…” The penalty can vary from $50,000 to $1 million, depending on whether the importer is an individual or a corporation; the number of violations adjudicated in the proceeding; the gravity of the violation; and the importer’s ability to pay. Civil penalties can be assessed regardless of whether the violation was intentional (in the language of the statute, “willful”).

Under Section 7734(a), the Department may seek criminal penalties in cases when the importer “knowingly” violated the law and its implementing regulations. Criminal penalties include both fines and imprisonment. To apply a criminal penalty, USDA must convict the importer in a trial – prove the violation beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

It is puzzling that USDA has not acted on this authority.

As we all know, the biological diversity of America’s forests’ is severely threatened by wood-borers that can enter the country in wood packaging. Tree mortality caused by non-native pests has been estimated to cost municipalities $1.7 billion per year (Aukema et al. 2011). For discussions of introduced pests’ impacts, see the sources listed at the end of this blog.

Nearly 12 years after APHIS adopted regulations implementing the formal International Standard for wood packaging, significant numbers of shipments that do not comply with the regulations continue to arrive. In the fiscal year that ended on September 30, Customs detected 2,000 shipments in which the wood packaging did not bear the mark certifying that the wood had been treated in accordance with ISPM#15. In nearly 900 additional shipments, CBP detected damaging pests in the wood packaging. (For more detail on this issue, see my blog from last February.) link. So, the need to improve compliance is manifest. Imposing a financial penalty strikes me as an available and useful strategy to achieve that improvement.

The new CBP policy is a much-needed step. Now USDA should reinforce that action by implementing its own enforcement powers. The USDA’s Office of General Counsel and APHIS should be asked what is preventing implementation and what can be done to move this forward. Effective action to interdict forest pests requires strong enforcement by both CBP and USDA. Right now, it looks like the Department of Homeland Security cares about U.S. forests more than the Department of Agriculture.

 

SOURCES

Aukema, J.E., B. Leung, K. Kovacs, C. Chivers, K. O. Britton, J. Englin, S.J. Frankel, R. G. Haight, T. P. Holmes, A. Liebhold, D.G. McCullough, B. Von Holle.. 2011. Economic Impacts of Non-Native Forest Insects in the Continental United States PLoS One September 2011 (Volume 6 Issue 9)

Background on forest pest damages:

Campbell and Schlarbaum, Fading Forest reports http://treeimprovement.utk.edu/FadingForests.htm

Lovett, G.M., M. Weiss, A.M. Liebhold, T.P. Holmes, B. Leung, K.F. Lambert, D.A. Orwig , F.T. Campbell, J. Rosenthal, D.G. McCullough, R. Wildova, M.P. Ayres, C.D. Canham, D.R. Foster, S.L. LaDeau, and T. Weldy. 2016. Nonnative forest insects and pathogens in the United States: Impacts and policy options. Ecological Applications, 0(0), 2016, pp. 1–19. DOI 10.1890/15-1176.1  Recommendations available at www.caryinstitute.org/tree-smart-trade

Posted by Faith Campbell

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

 

New Woodborer Detected – Importance of Surveillance By-Catch

 

Agrilus smaragdifrons – photo by Ryan Rieder, New Jersey Department of Agriculture

 

At least 11 non-native metallic wood-boring beetles in the genus Agrilus  have been introduced to either the United States or Canada – or both. The most recent detection is Agrilus smaragdifrons Ganglbauer, which feeds on the invasive plant tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima). This information comes largely from an important new paper by noted entomologist E. Richard Hoebeke at the University of Georgia and others (see the reference Hoebeke et al. 2017 at the end of this blog).

 

Two more Agrilus species that are native to Mexico and – in one case, also Arizona – have been introduced to separate parts of the U.S. and are killing naïve hosts there. These are A. prionus (which attacks soapberry trees in Texas) and A. auroguttatus (the goldspotted oak borer, which attacks several oak trees in California). Both species are described here

 

The genus Agrilus is considered to be the largest genus of the entire Animal Kingdom; it has over 3,000 valid species (Hoebeke et al. 2017).

 

Most of the Agrilus introduced to North America do not attack trees. Several attack crops such as grapes, currants and gooseberries, and rasberries (Hoebeke et al. 2017; (Jendek and Grebennikov 2009; reference at the end of the blog). Others attack horticultural plants including roses, wisteria, and mimosa (Jendek and Grebennikov 2009).

 

Still others attack plants that are invasive, such as honeysuckles (Lonicera spp). One, A. hyperici Creutzer, was deliberately introduced as a biocontrol agent targeting St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) (Jendek and Grebennikov 2009).

 

However, Agrilus sulcicollis attacks oaks, beech, chestnut and other trees in the Fagaceae family in its native Europe. The beetle was detected in Ontario in 2006 (Jendek and Grebennikov 2009).

 

The most recently detected East Asian “jewel” beetle, Agrilus smaragdifrons, was discovered by analysis of Agrilus species caught in surveillance programs targeting other species – usually emerald ash borer (EAB) (A. planipennis). The beetle was first identified in traps deployed by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture. Unlike in many trapping programs, New Jersey screened the trap catches for all beetles in the family Buprestidae (which includes EAB). In 2015, two samples from separate trapping sites in the state contained a distinct but unrecognized species. These were identified by Dr. Hoebeke as the East Asian A. smaragdifrons (Hoebeke et al. 2017).

 

Alerted to the new species, scientists conferred and found additional detections of the species. An EAB biosurveillance program in New England utilizing the native ground-nesting wasp Cerceris fumipennis also detected the A. smaragdifrons in at least one location in central Connecticut in 2015. (The wasps capture beetles in the Buprestid family to feed to their young. By observing which species of beetles are brought to their nests by the wasps, scientists can learn which species are present in an area.)

 

Pennsylvania has collected A. smaragdifrons in surveillance programs targeting either EAB or spotted lantern fly (Lycorma delicatula (White))(Hoebeke et al. 2017).

locations where A. smaragdifrons has been detected; map from Hoebeke et al. 2017

It turned out that A. smaragdifrons has been in the U.S. for several years. One scientist photographed the beetle – without knowing what it was – in 2011 in New Jersey and posted the image at BugGuide (http://bugguide.net/node/view/1139674/bgimage ; accessed by Hoebeke and colleagues on 1 May 2017).

 

Recent field observations in China and the U.S. have observed both adults and larvae feeding on tree of heaven. In Beijing, many Ailanthus trees in gardens or along roadsides have succumbed to attack by this wood-borer. Other tree species on the grounds of Beijing Forestry University have not been attacked by A. smaragdifrons (Hoebeke et al. 2017). Still, no proper host-specificity test has yet been conducted on the beetle.

 

Of course, Ailanthus is widespread across North America, from southern Canada to Florida, and even along river courses in the arid Southwest. According to the USDA Forest Service (see the third on-line reference at the end of the blog), Ailanthus is known to be present in 42 states. It is most abundant in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states. For example, 18% of the forest plots inventoried by the USDA Forest Service Forest Inventory Analysis program in West Virginia had Ailanthus present. Efforts are under way to try to find biocontrol agents (Hoebeke et al. 2017).

 

 

Importance of analyzing by-catch in insect detection surveys.

 

While most managers of pest surveys ignore the non-target species caught in their traps (“by-catch”), this detection shows that examining the by-catch can sometimes result in discovering previously unknown species. (Other examples of such detections include the pine pest Sirex noctilio in New York in 2004 and the oak-feeding Agrilus sulcicollis in Ontario and later Michigan.

 

Hoebeke and his colleagues strongly recommend that scientists pay attention to non-target insects captured in their surveys, especially those insects that show up in any abundance for the first time.

 

SOURCES

 

Hoebeke, E.R., E. Jendek, J.E. Zablotny, R. Rieder, R. Yoo, V.V. Grebennikov and L. Ren. 2017. First North American Records of the East Asian Metallic Wood-Boring Beetle Agrilus smaragdifrons Ganglbauer (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Agrilinae), a Specialist on Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima, Simaroubaceae) Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 119(3):408-422.

 

This article demonstrates how to distinguish the Ailanthus beetle from other Agrilus species.

 

Jendek, E. and V.V. Grebennikov. 2009. Agrilus sulcicollis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), a new alien species in North America. Canadian Entomologist 141: 236–245.

Maryland has declared A. smaragdifrons its “invasive species of the month” for December 2017. Visit http://mdinvasivesp.org/invader_of_the_month.html

Information about Ailanthus as an invasive plant is available at

https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/plants/treeheaven.shtml ; https://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/pubs/midatlantic/midatlantic.pdf

https://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/43136

Penalties for Importers Who Violate Wood Packaging Rules!

CBP inspection of wood packaging; CBP photo

On September 25, the DHS Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced that beginning on November 1, the agency would no longer eschew penalizing importers of non-compliant wood packaging until that importer had accumulated five such interceptions in the course of a year.

Beginning November 1, “responsible parties with a documented WPM violation may be issued a penalty under Title 19 United States Code (USC) § 1595a(b) or under 19 USC § 1592.”

As readers of this blog might remember, I have frequently fulminated against the “five strikes” policy.  The United States began full implementation of the international standard governing treatment of wood packaging (ISPM#15) 11 and ½ years ago. The U.S. and Canada began requiring China to treat its wood packaging nearly 18 years ago. Nevertheless, numerous shipments containing wood packaging that does not comply with the regulations continue to arrive at our borders – and to bring pests. As of February, only about 30 import shipments (out of nearly 21,000 shipments found to be in violation of ISPM#15 requirements) have received a financial penalty.

shipments of stone or tile are frequently supported by non-compliant wood packaging; photo (c) the Queen by right of Canada (CFIA)

In a blog I posted in February I described the continuing detections of pests in wood packaging. In summary, during Fiscal Years 2010 through 2016, CBP detected nearly 5,000 shipments of wood packaging that harbored a pest in a regulated taxonomic group. The APHIS interception database for the period FYs 2011 – 2016 contained 2,547 records for insect detections on wood packaging. The insects belonged to more than 20 families. A quarter were in the Cerambycid family; 11% were Buprestids. In a study of insect larvae removed from incoming wood packaging from the period April 2012 through August 2016, APHIS scientists evaluated 1,068 insects from 786 separate interceptions of non-compliant wood packaging. The wood packaging in all three datasets came from dozens of countries.

 

(Remember, the U.S. and Canada do not apply ISPM#15 to wood packaging moving between the two countries. Neither country inspects wood packaging from the other country at even the low rate of inspection applied to wood packaging coming from other countries – so we don’t know how many quarantine pests are moving in this high-volume trade.)

 

The Bureau of Customs’ action has partially fulfilled one of two recommendations that I made in the February blog. I applaud CBP’s action. However, neither CBP or APHIS has yet prohibited importers with records of repeat violations from using wood packaging – my second recommendation.

 

Note that the CBP decision applies Customs regulations; USDA has apparently not changed its policy of allowing importers to accumulate five (detected) violations in a calendar year before applying the civil penalties provided by the Plant Protection Act.  Why?

 

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

Posted by Faith Campbell

Polyphagous shot hole borer attacks almond trees

I have written numerous times about the risk posed to urban and rural forests posed by the polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers and their associated fungi. (Blog exploring risk to urban forests; discussion of need for regulation.)

Yet neither California authorities nor USDA APHIS has put significant effort into containing these insects – which continue to spread north in the state. Perhaps this will change in response to the U.S. Senate’s Agriculture appropriations report, which on p. 39 instructs the Secretary of Agriculture to report on steps being taken to “to minimize the spread of other pests such as the polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers.”

Another possible spur to action is that scientists have now proved that the Fusarium euwallaceae fungus – the primary fungus transported by these beetles – can infect almond trees  — a major economic crop in the San Joaquin Valley of California. The polyphagous shot hole borer is known to be in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties – ever closer to the agricultural areas. California produces 82% of total global production of almonds. In 2015, the state’s almond production was valued at $5.33 billion. $5.14 billion (96%) of this production was exported (California Agricultural Production Statistics).

Already, the polyphagous shot hole borer threatens a wide range of native and horticultural trees in the region. (Damage to avocado trees is less than originally believed.) Together, the polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers and their associated fungi threaten more than a third of trees in the urban forests in southern California, with a cost for the trees’ removal and replacement estimated at $36 billion.

Hosts native in southern California:

  • Box elder (Acer negundo)
  • Big leaf maple (Acer macrophyllum)
  • California Sycamore (Platanus racemosa)
  • Red Willow (Salix laevigata)
  • Arroyo willow (Salix lasiolepsis)
  • Goodding’s black willow (Salix gooddingii)
  • Coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia)
  • Engelmann Oak (Quercus engelmannii)
  • Valley oak (Quercus lobata)
  • Canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepis)
  • Fremont Cottonwood  (Populus fremontii)
  • Black cottonwood (Populus trichocarpa) *
  • White alder (Alnus rhombifolia)
  • Blue palo verde (Cercidium floridum)
  • Palo verde (Parkinsonia aculeata)
  •  Mesquite (Prosopis articulata)
  • Mule Fat (Baccharis salicifolia)
  • California buckeye (Aesculus californica)

Hosts that are exotics but widespread in southern California:

  • Avocado (Persea americana)
  • Castor bean (Ricinus communis)
  • English Oak (Quercus robur)
  • London plane (Platanus x acerifolia)
  • Coral tree (Erythrina corallodendon)*
  • Brea (Cercidium sonorae)
  • Weeping willow (Salix babylonica)
  • Red  Flowering Gum  (Eucalyptus ficifolia)
  • Tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima)
  • Kurrajong (Brachychiton populneus)
  • Black mission fig (Ficus carica)
  • Japanese beech (Fagus crenata)
  • Dense logwood/Shiny xylosma (Xylosma congestum)
  • Black Poplar (Populus nigra)
  • Carrotwood (Cupaniopsis anacardioides)
  • Kentia Palm (Howea forsteriana)
  • King Palm (Archontophoenix cunninghamiana)
  • Tamarix (Tamarix ramosissima)

Hosts that are native or widespread exotics in the Southeastern states:

  • Box elder (Acer negundo) (repeated from above)
  • Liquidambar (Liquidambar styraciflua)
  • Japanese wisteria (Wisteria floribunda)
  • Tree of heaven (Alianthus altissima)

Hosts that are sold interstate in the nursery trade (note that PSHB, at least, has attacked branches as small as 2.5 cm – Coleman, 2016):

  • Japanese maple (Acer palmatum)
  • Camelia (Camellia semiserrata)
  • Chinese holly (Ilex cornuta)

 

See also the writeup at www.dontmovefirewood.org

 

Source:

Moreno, K., J.D. Carrillo, F. Trouillas, A. Eskalen. 9/24/2017 Almond (Prunus dulcis) is susceptible to Fusarium euwallaceae, a fungal pathogen vectored by the Polyphagous Shot Hole Borer in Calif | Plant Disease. http://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/abs/10.1094/PDIS-07-17-1110-PDN 1/2

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

 

Posted by Faith T. Campbell

Worldwide Study Confirms ISPM#15 is not Protecting Forests – What Do We Do Now About Pests in Wood Packaging?

 

You know that the continuing pest risk associated with imports of wood packaging is among my biggest concerns. See, for example, fact sheets here and blogs here and here.

A new book about the family Cerambycidae (edited by Wang 2017; reference at end of blog) confirms that longhorned beetles continue to be introduced to many countries via this pathway, more than a decade after widespread implementation of the international standard governing wood packaging (ISPM#15). Furthermore, data from several countries confirm that China continues to fall short … but that problems are more widespread.

The Wang book finds that 16 outbreaks of the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) were detected between 2012 and 2015.

Unless otherwise noted, the information provided here comes largely from the book’s chapter on biosecurity coauthored by Dominic Eyre and Robert A. Haack (see link below). Opinions stated are mine, unless specified otherwise.

In some cases – which I will note – further details are from my earlier posts.

While I think the risk of introduction of highly damaging pests via the wood packaging pathway is well documented in Wang (2017) and other publications, no one can truly quantify this risk because of shortcomings in countries’ data. Available data come primarily from countries’ records of pest “interceptions” – usually at points of entry.  However, interception data are inadequate to conclusively establish the lack of a threat for a particular trade or to provide a fair comparison of the relative threat of particular trades. Most interception databases have the following shortcomings (Eyre and Haack are summarizing points made by a third scientist – Lee Humble – in an earlier article):

(1) interception databases are not based on random sampling, which is necessary to measure the “approach” or “infestation” rate;

(2) inspections which find no pests are not recorded, so we cannot know what proportion of incoming shipments are infested;

(3) once inspectors have discovered a quarantine pest in a shipment, the consignments may be destroyed without further inspection, and thus other exotic organisms can be missed;

(4) only a small percentage of individual shipments are inspected; and

(5) organisms often are not identified to species due to difficulty of identifying larvae.

Furthermore,

(1) trade volumes and sources can change rapidly;

(2) the number of consignments inspected varies from year to year in response to national and regional plant health and wider government priorities;

(3) the method and intensity of quarantine inspections can vary within and among countries and as well as over time; and

(4) different proportions of consignments from different trades can be inspected, reflecting the perceived quarantine risks of each trade.

Still, scientists try to analyze the available data because propagule pressure may be the most important factor in determining whether an exotic pest becomes established.

What have they found?

Data from both the United States and Europe document that problems of non-compliance continue in recent years – more than a decade after adoption of ISPM#15.

United States:

  • Since APHIS interception records began being computerized in 1985, Cerambycidae have been among the most frequently intercepted insect families associated with wood products and packaging. The top five countries for infested shipments during the period 1984 – 2008 were China, Italy, Mexico, Turkey and Spain. A country’s rank is linked in part to import volumes – which are very high for China, Canada, and Mexico. Because the  U.S. inspects very limited quantities of wood packaging from Canada, its absence from the top five may be misleading [discussed in my blog from February, here.

Another factor explaining these countries’ rankings is the continued – in fact increasing! – presence of pests in wood packaging accompanying imports of tile and quarry products (e.g., marble, slate). Many of these imports are from Italy, Spain, and Mexico. Interceptions on these imports increased significantly from the mid-1990s to 2008. The increase in these interceptions is most alarming because it shows USDA leaders have not yet taken effective action to curtail this risk, despite its being evident since record-keeping began.

 

  • Over the period Fiscal Years 2010 through 2016, the U.S. Bureau of Customs and Border Protection has detected nearly 5,000 consignments in which cases the wood packaging harbored a pest in a regulated taxonomic group. APHIS experts identified 2,500 insects taken from wood packaging during this period; a quarter were Cerambycids. A second APHIS analysis of a subset of the wood packaging-associated insects found examples from 39 countries, including 212 shipments from Europe; 130 shipments from Asia; and 341 shipments from the Americas – almost exclusively Mexico. [These detections are discussed in my blog from February, here.

 

Europe has had a similar experience.

  • Interception records included in EUROPHYT show 306 Cerambycidae interceptions on wood packaging over the period 1998 – 2013. The number of interceptions recorded in 2012 and 2013 are double those of all previous years. Each year, the majority are on wood packaging from China.
  • Most interceptions of ALB (distinct from detections of establishments) have occurred after the shipment cleared border inspection procedures, e.g., in warehouses.
  • As with the U.S., while the majority of non-compliant shipments are from China, the problem is worldwide: Europe has also found various species of longhorned beetles in wood packaging from various European countries (inside and outside the European Union), other Asian countries, Africa, Australasia, and the Americas.
  • Austria inspected 451 consignments of stone imports received April 1, 2013 – April 14, 2014. Forty-four consignments (9.8%) were found to be out of compliance with ISPM#15. Live Cerambycidae were found in 38 consignments (8%), including ALB. This finding confirms the widespread awareness that stone imports rank high for non-compliant wood packaging.

 

Regulatory Authorities’ Response (or lack thereof)

Europe

  • Since March 31, 2013, the European Union has required inspection of 90% of consignments of slate, marble, and granite and 15% of consignments of two other categories of stone imports.

CBP agriculture specialists in Laredo, Texas, examine a wooden pallet for signs of insect infestation. [Note presence of an apparent ISPM stamp on the side of the pallet] Photo by Rick Pauza
United States

  • As noted by Haack et al. (2014) (reference below), as of 2009, approximately 13,000 containers harboring pests probably enter the U.S. each year. That is 35 potential pest arrivals each day. [This issue is also discussed in the fact sheet and blogs here and here.
  • The United States has not specified an obligatory inspection rate for such high-risk imports as stone and tile. Instead, it relies on Customs and Border Protection to target import shipments suspected of being out of compliance based on past performance of importers, suppliers, and types of imports.
  • Several relevant issues are discussed in the blog in February 2017 (second blog linked to above). First, I noted that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Bureau of Customs and Border Protection – over the seven-year period Fiscal Years 2010 through 2016 – has detected nearly 5,000 cases of wood packaging harboring a pest in a regulated taxonomic group. Comparing the estimate by Haack et al. 2014 with the CBP data indicates that Customs is detecting about 6% of all pest-infested shipments.
  • Furthermore, about 26% of infested wood pieces detected by CBP were found in wood that was marked as having been treated according to ISPM#15 requirements. What does this mean? Fraud? Accidental misapplication of the treatments? Or are the treatments less effective than hoped? What are USDA and other responsible agencies doing to clarify the causes?
  • CBP staff reported that only about 30 import shipments (out of nearly 21,000 shipments found to be in violation of ISPM#15 requirements) have received a financial penalty. How can USDA and Customs officials justify this failure to enforce the regulations?

 

 

What Can Be Done to Close Down the Wood Packaging Pathway

 

I suggest that our goal should be to hold foreign suppliers responsible for complying with ISPM#15. One approach is to penalize violators. APHIS and Customs might

  • Prohibit imports in packaging made from solid wood (boards, 4 x 4s, etc.) from foreign suppliers which have a record of repeated violations over the 11 years ISPM#15 has been in effect (17 years for exporters from Hong Kong & mainland China). Officials should allow continued imports from those same suppliers as long as they are contained in other types of packaging materials, including plastic, metals, or fiberboards.
  • Fine an importer for each new shipment found to be out of compliance with ISPM#15 in cases when the foreign supplier of that shipment has a record of repeated violations.

 

There would need to be a severe penalty to deter foreign suppliers from simply changing their names or taking other steps to escape being associated with their violation record.

 

At the same time, the agencies should work with non-governmental organizations and importers to promote creation of an industry certification program that would recognize and reward importers who have voluntarily undertaken actions aimed at voluntarily exceeding ISPM#15 requirements so as to provide a higher level of protection against invasive species that would otherwise potentially be introduced into the United States.

 

What You Can Do

  • Tell your member of Congress and Senators that you are worried that our trees are still being put at risk by insects arriving in wood packaging. Ask them to urge the USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue to take the actions outlined above in order to curtail introductions of additional tree-killing pests.
  • Talk to your friends and neighbors about the threat to our trees. Ask them to join you in communicating these concerns to their Congressional representatives and Senators.
  • Write letters to the editors of your local newspaper or TV news station.

 

Use your knowledge about pests threatening trees in your state or locality in your communications!

 

Other Introduction Pathways for Cerambycids

tree removals in Tukwilla, WA to eradicate citrus longhorned beetle; photo by Washington State Department of Agriculture

Plants for planting

Other studies have confirmed that importation of living plants (called by regulators “plants for planting”) is a high-risk pathway for introducing tree-killing pests. See the Eyre and Haack chapter for a summary.

This is as true for highly damaging Cerambycids as for other types of plant pests. One of the most damaging is the citrus longhorned beetle (CLB) (Anoplophora chinensis). CLB [https://www.dontmovefirewood.org/invasive-species/] poses an even greater threat to North American forests than ALB – it has a wider host range and climate-matching models show that it could establish across most of the United States. CLB were detected in a nursery in Tukwilla, Washington, in 2001; the pest was eradicated. Nine CLB outbreaks have been detected in Europe; three are considered eradicated (Eyre & Haack 2017).

Eyre and Haack (2017) report that in Europe of the 455 Cerambycidae intercepted over the period 1998 – 2013, 54 were on imported in living plants. These included probably 49 citrus longhorned beetle (CLB). Most were detected primarily on maple nursery stock that originated China (32), with smaller numbers from other countries, including Netherlands (8), and Italy (where CLB has been established).

New Zealand has intercepted 74 CLB on plants for planting over the 28 year period 1980 – 2008.  One third of this total was intercepted in 2008.

 

Authorities’ Responses (or lack thereof)

Europe

  • Since 2012, the European Union has required that 10% of CLB host plants imported into the European Union should be destructively sampled (that is, dissected to see whether insects are present internally).
  • This requirement supplements a broader requirement that plants for planting be treated as a high risk commodity. Member states are required to inspect all incoming P4P consignments. This requirement is, however, undermined by much more lenient requirements regarding movement of plants among EU member states – some genera are not regulated … others are controlled by Plant Passports – an industry-led scheme.  [For more on this issue, see my blog from October 2016 here.

 

United States

  • APHIS issued a Federal order tightly restricting imports of CLB hosts from Europe in 2013 – four years after a CLB outbreak was detected in a part of the Netherlands which is a center for the production of hardy ornamental nursery stock for European and probably American markets.
  • APHIS proposed to revise its overall plant importation regulations (the “Q-37 regulations) to rely more on integrated management by the exporting nurseries in contrast to port inspections. This rulemaking has stalled. [See my blog about this here.]

 

Finished Wood Products

While no country is keeping comprehensive records, finished wood products have transported longhorned beetles.  Eyre and Haack (2017) concluded that upholstered furniture presents one of the highest risk among the finished wood products – partly because imports are rising rapidly, partly because insect-damaged wood can be hidden under the upholstery. New Zealand found that some Asian manufacturers place good quality wood on visible surfaces and poor quality timber (insect damaged and bark covered) in internal sections. Officials inspected 49 couches and found that 30 had wood with bark, 19 had insect contaminants, and 32 had visible insect damage. Fungal samples were isolated from 11 of the couches. They found 4 longhorned beetles.

 

References

Wang, Q. (Ed.). 2017. Cerambycidae of the world: biology and pest management.  Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press

The chapter on biosecurity is available here:  http://treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/54552

A chapter on Cerambycid impacts in urban and rural forests is available here: http://treesearch.fs.fed.us/pubs/54543

 

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

 

Posted by Faith Campbell

Thank Your Senators!!!

 

Congress is now considering funding for various agencies and programs for Fiscal Year 2018 – which begins on October 1, 2017. Both the House and Senate Appropriations committees have adopted bills to fund APHIS (in the agriculture appropriations bill) and USFS (in the interior appropriations bill). Once these are passed – I expect with little change – by the appropriate chambers, the two very different bills will be reconciled by a Conference Committee made up of members of both the House and Senate and then passed in final form.

Please thank the Senators on the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee for their strong support for APHIS’ programs targeting tree pests. Ask them to maintain this support during the Conference – where the House members will be pushing for cuts.

To read the bills and accompanying reports, go here for the House appropriations bill for USDA, (including APHIS); here for the House Interior bill (including the USFS).  Go here for the Senate appropriation bill for USDA.  (Links to the bills and reports are at the end of each press release.) The Senate Appropriations Committee has not yet acted on the Interior bill.

 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Appropriators are working under severe pressure given the large spending reductions proposed by the President in the Administration’s budget sent to the Congress earlier in the Spring.

The House appropriated $906 million for APHIS. This is $40 million less than in FY17 but $96.4 million more for APHIS than the Administration requested. The House agriculture appropriations bill made significant cuts in the Tree and Wood Pests program in order to stay within its overall total while maintaining or expanding other programs. The result would devastate the Tree and Wood Pests program. The House bill cuts funding for this program by 30% from the level provided in recent years – from $54 million to $38 million.

The Senate bill, in contrast, increases funding for the Tree and Wood Pests program by $2 million – from $54 million to $56 million. The Senate was able to do this because its bill provided significantly more money for APHIS than did the House: the Senate bill appropriated $953.2 million for APHIS, $7 million above the FY17 funding level; $143.2 million above the Administration’s budget request; and $47 million above the House funding level.

I have blogged often about the necessity of maintaining the Tree and Wood Pest program. In recent years, APHIS’ Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) eradication program has cost $35 – $40 million per year. The program has succeeded in shrinking the New York infestation by 85% and the Massachusetts infestation by 34%. The Ohio infestation has also been reduced – although by considerably less. In its FY2016 annual report, APHIS said the infestation area had been cut by 15%. However, earlier in July APHIS announced that the Ohio infestation is larger than previously known. The quarantine zone was expanded from 61 to 62 square miles. Now is not the time to abandon the 21-year old ALB eradication effort. For a reminder of the threat this insect poses to our hardwood trees, see the write-up here.

The report from the Senate Committee link says that it is “essential” to complete eradication of the ALB.

APHIS and the states have already agreed to cut back the agency’s efforts to regulate movement of ash wood in order to slow the spread of the emerald ash borer (EAB). I am unhappy about this retreat. Still, APHIS planned to continue to survey for EAB in unregulated areas, to educate appropriate publics, to coordinate with affected states, and to produce and disperse biocontrol agents. The Senate funding level – unlike the House funding level – would allow APHIS to maintain these vitally important activities aimed at protecting America’s urban and wildland forests from EAB (For a reminder of that threat, see the write-up here).

Finally, states and stakeholders will expect APHIS to continue its program to slow the spread of the gypsy moth – a program which has received from the Tree and Wood Pest program $5 – $6 million per year in recent years. APHIS must also be prepared to eradicate any newly detected outbreaks, especially of the Asian gypsy moth on the West coast.

I have repeatedly argued that APHIS should expand its program so as to address the many additional tree-killing pests introduced in recent years, including

  • Redbay ambrosia beetle / laurel wilt disease
  • Sirex woodwasp
  • Goldspotted oak borer
  • Walnut twig beetle and thousand cankers disease
  • Soapberry borer
  • Polyphagous & Kuroshio shot hole borers
  • Velvet longhorned beetle
  • Spotted lanternfly

Therefore, I rejoice to see that the Senate report link says: “The Secretary is directed to report to the Committee regarding the steps being taken to eradicate the Asian long-horned beetle and spotted lanternfly and to minimize the spread of other pests such as the polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers (emphasis added).

The Senate report also calls on APHIS to continue efforts to control the coconut rhinoceros beetle in Hawai`i and Ceratocystis disease  That latter is presumably the pathogen causing rapid `ohi`a death in Hawai`i.

The other APHIS program which has supported programs targetting tree-killing pests is the Specialty Crops program. The House bill increased funding for the Specialty Crops program from $156 million to $160 million for FY18. However, $152.3 million of this total – 95% — is allocated to specified agricultural pests, including fruit flies, diseases of citrus trees, glassy winged sharpshooter and European grape vine moth, pale cyst nematode, and light brown apple moth. This means that little is left for addressing sudden oak death or tree-killing pests next year.

Strangely, APHIS said, in its FY16 Annual Report, that the European grape vine moth had been eradicated. So why does the FY18 House appropriations bill allocate $5 million for this pest? It might be for continued surveillance to verify that eradication has been successful.

The Senate bill provides even more – $166 million – for the Specialty Crops program.  The Senate Committee report instructs APHIS to spend “no less than the fiscal year 2017 level of funding” to manage potential movement of sudden oak death in the nursery trade – without specifying the amount.

The House committee did expand overall funding for plant pests to a total of $294 million. The House report says that this total includes an increase of $12.5 million for a Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program. This funding explicitly can be spent on tree and wood pest surveillance as well as the clean plant network and citrus health. This increase is welcome, but it does not make up for the 30% cut in specific funding for the tree and wood pest program. The increased surveillance is of doubtful value if it does not result in eradication or containment efforts!

Again, the Senate bill is more generous; it provides $320,308,000 for plant health.

The decisions made by the House Appropriations Committee clearly show the importance of lobbying by traditional agricultural interests in defending funding for programs of interest to them. Several programs targetting diseases of livestock and poultry were maintained at the FY17 funding level. As noted above, the “specialty crop pests” account was increased.

 

Those of us who care about protecting our trees must become more visible advocates for these programs.

 

As in the past, both the House and Senate reports support APHIS’ access to emergency funding to be obtained as transfers from the Commodity Credit Corporation for the “arrest” and eradication of animal and plant pests and diseases that threaten American agriculture. The House language appears to be less restrictive.

Unfortunately, it has been years since APHIS sought – much less received – funding through the emergency provision to address tree-killing pests. This is why CISP and others are proposing to amend the Farm Bill to broaden APHIS’ authority to access these funds when appropriated funds are insufficient to counter tree-killing pests. (See my blog from early July for information about these proposed amendments and how you can support them.)

The House also follows the Administration in calling for greater cost-sharing with States and other cooperators. The Houe report states: “The Committee directs APHIS to maximize the use of cost-sharing agreements or matching requirements with states, territories, producers, foreign governments, non-governmental organizations, and any other recipient of services in order to reduce the cost burden on the agency.”

The President’s budget request called for even more severe cuts and justified these cuts by saying that the programs could be maintained if the states, localities, and industries benefitting from eradication or containment of the ALB and EAB helped pay for the containment program. The budget called for beneficiaries to pay 50% of program costs. However, states, localities, and industries are very unlikely to make up such severe cuts in funding. Already, local governments across the country are spending more than $3 billion each year to remove trees on city property killed by non-native pests. Homeowners are spending $1 billion to remove and replace trees on their properties and are absorbing an additional $1.5 billion in reduced property values and reducing the quality of their neighborhoods (Aukema et al. 2011; full reference at end of blog.)

Remember: thank your senators for their generosity to APHIS’ tree pest programs – especially if they are members of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations subcommittee (members listed below).

John Hoeven, North Dakota

Thad Cochran, Mississippi

Mitch McConnell, Kentucky

Susan Collins, Maine

Roy Blunt, Missouri

Jerry Moran, Kansas,

Marco Rubio, Florida

Jeff Merkley, Oregon

Diane Feinstein, California

Jon Tester, Montana

Tom Udall, New Mexico

Patrick Leahy, Vermont

Tammy Baldwin, Illinois

 

 

 

US Forest Service

The House Interior Committee provided $92,084,000 for Forest Health Management, $2,416,000 below the FY17 funding level but $1,694,000 above the budget request. The Report does not specify the amounts for federal v. non-federal lands, but the Administration’s request specified $54 million for federal lands and $36 million for cooperative programs managing forests on non-federal lands. (As recently as FY2014, the forest health program received more than $100 million per year.)

The House Interior Committee recommends $278,368,000 for Forest and Rangeland Research, $10,146,000 below the FY 2017 funding level and $19,368,000 above the budget request. $75 million  of this total is allocated to the Forest Inventory and Analysis program. The Report says that the Committee does not accept the proposed reduction for invasive species research. This is gratifying. However, I have been unable to find the proposed reduction, and there has never been a “line” specifically for invasive species research. Therefore, I am unclear about what level of funding has been retained. (In past years, the total allocated to research on non-native tree-killing pests averaged about $5 million.)

The Senate Appropriations Committee has not yet acted on the Interior Appropriations bill so I cannot tell you how much money that body will provide for these programs.

 

SOURCE

 

Aukema, J.E., B. Leung, K. Kovacs, C. Chivers, K. O. Britton, J. Englin, S.J. Frankel, R. G. Haight, T. P. Holmes, A. Liebhold, D.G. McCullough, B. Von Holle.. 2011. Economic Impacts of Non-Native Forest Insects in the Continental United States PLoS One September 2011 (Volume 6 Issue 9)

 

 

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

Posted by Faith Campbell

 

How we can strengthen programs to protect trees from invasive pests

USDA; photo by F.T. Campbell

Every five years, Congress adopts a new Farm Bill. The House and Senate Agriculture committees are  holding hearings and considering proposals for the Farm Bill due to be adopted in 2019. Now is the time for people concerned about the continuing introductions of forest pests and weakness of our government’s response to pests that have become established to ask their Representative and Senators to adopt legislative language to strengthen relevant USDA programs. I suggest specific proposals below – which I hope you will urge your representatives to support.

The Farm Bill supports our Nation’s largest soil and water conservation programs. The Farm Bill can also be used to create new programs that address other issues – such as pest prevention and response.

The Farm Bill already has been used to strengthen APHIS’ phytosanitary programs. For example, Section 10007 of the 2014 Farm Bill provides more than $50 million annually for the Plant Pest and Disease Management and Disaster Prevention Program. These funds have supported numerous vitally important research and management programs targetting polyphagous shot hole borer, spotted lanternfly, velvet longhorned borer, thousand cankers disease, emerald ash borer, as well as more general goals such as improving traps for detecting wood-borers and outreach about emerald ash borer to Native American tribes. With APHIS’ annual appropriations falling far short of the resources needed to respond to invasions by numerous plant pests, Section 10007 has provided essential supplements to the agency’s programs.

The new Farm Bill to be adopted by the Congress offers opportunities to strengthen other components of USDA programs with the goal of protecting the tree species comprising our wildland, rural, and urban forests.

The Center for Invasive Species Prevention and Vermont Woodland Owners Association have developed several proposals that we hope will be incorporated into the 2019 Farm Bill. These proposals have been endorsed by the Reduce Risk from Invasive Species Coalition.  The amendments have also been endorsed by the Weed Science Society of America. CISP submitted testimony summarizing these proposals to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry in early July, when the Committee held a hearing on the Farm Bill’s conservation and forestry programs. (For a copy of our testimony, contact us using the “contact us” button.)

You can help by contacting your Representative and Senators and asking them to support these proposed amendments to the 2019 Farm Bill.

These proposed amendments seek to address the following needs.

  • Do you wish to strengthen APHIS’ commitment to pest prevention in the face of a competing mandate to facilitate trade?

Then you might want to support a proposed amendment to Section 3 of the Plant Protection Act. The new language would read as follows:

“(3) It is the responsibility of the Secretary to facilitate exports, imports and interstate commerce in agricultural products and other commodities that pose a risk of harboring plant pests or noxious weeds in ways that will reduce prevent, to the greatest extent practicable feasible, as determined by the Secretary, the risk of dissemination of plant pests and noxious weeds.”

  • Do you wish to increase funding for APHIS’ programs responding to recently-detected plant pests?

Then you might want to support a proposed amendment that would expand APHIS’ access to emergency funds by enacting a broad definition of “emergency”. Under the new definition, “emergency” would mean “any outbreak of a plant pest or noxious weed which directly or indirectly threatens any segment of the agricultural production of the United States and for which the then available appropriated funds are determined by the Secretary to be insufficient to timely achieve the arrest, control, eradication, or prevention of the spread of such plant pest or noxious weed.”

This amendment would help APHIS evade the downward push of its declining annual appropriation and enable the agency to tackle more of the tree-killing pest that have entered the U.S.

Customs inspecting wood packaging

  • Do you wish to promote stronger measures aimed at minimizing the presence of pests in wood packaging material? (I have blogged repeatedly about the continuing pest risk associated with the wood packaging pathway.)

Then you might want to support a proposed amendment that would establish a non-governmental Center for Agriculture-Trade Partnership Against Invasive Species. That Center would promote industry best practices, encourage information-sharing, and create an industry certification program under which importers would voluntarily implement pest-prevention actions that are more stringent than current regulations (ISPM#15) Link require.

American Chestnut Foundation chestnut in experimental planting in Fairfax County, Virginia; photo F.T. Campbell

  • Do you wish to strengthen efforts to develop programs that would provide long-term funding to support 1) research and development of long-term pest-control strategies such as biological control and breeding of trees resistant to insects or pathogens and 2) testing, development, and implementation of strategies to restore to the forest native tree species that have been severely depleted by non-native pests?

Then you might want to support a pair of proposed amendments that would:

  1. Establish a fund, to be managed by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to provide grants under which eligible institutions would carry out research intended to test and develop strategies aimed at restoring such tree species. Such strategies might include finding, testing, and deploying biological control agents or breeding of trees resistant to pests.
  2. Amend the McIntyre-Stennis Act to establish a fund to provide grants to support programs to eligible institutions to conduct experimental plantings aimed at restoring such tree species to the forest.

You can obtain copies of the proposed amendments, in legislative language, by contacting us using the “contact us” button.

Your efforts will be valuable in any case … but if your Representative or Senator is on the agriculture committee, contacting that Member will be most important!

Members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry:

Republicans (majority):

  • Pat Roberts, KS, Chairman
  • Thad Cochran, MS
  • Mitch McConnell, KY
  • John Boozman, AR
  • John Hoeven, ND
  • Joni Ernst, IA.
  • Chuck Grassley, IA
  • John Thune, SD.
  • Steve Daines, MT
  • David Perdue, GA
  • Luther Strange, AL

Democrats (minority):

Members of the House Committee on Agriculture

Republicans (majority):

Democrats (minority):

 

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

Posted by Faith Campbell

Insects & Pathogens Introduced Via Plant Imports – Let’s Collaborate to Understand Risk

 

map showing locations in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park of ʻōhiʻa infested by rapid ʻōhiʻa death; NPS map available here

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s adoption of a new list of plant species barred from importation pending pest risk assessment after a four-year wait (NAPPRA) [see my previous blog from June 21, here] prompts me to review what I know about pests associated with plant imports – and to appeal for collaboration among non-USDA scientists to improve our understanding of current  risks. Therefore I’m sharing some pest import and establishment data. I welcome the opportunity to work with experts to evaluate the level of risk and other matters that might be extracted from these data. Contact me to explore how we might work together.

As was pointed out by Eschen et al. 2015 (see list of sources at the end of this blog), most countries’ data on the “plants for planting” pathway are inadequate to allow an assessment of phytosanitary measures’ efficacy in preventing pest introductions. The authors stressed the need for data on:

  1. plant imports at the level of genus, including plant type and origin;
  2. pest arrival rates on each of these categories of plant imports; and
  3. pest establishments.

In the apparent absence of agencies’ efforts to close these data gaps, I propose that we work together, using available information, to improve our understanding of the current level of risk. Perhaps we can agree on which pest species are real red flags; decide which pathways most need new policy approaches; and reach conclusions about the implications of holes in the data.

  1. What Do We Know About Plant Imports?

The U.S. imports approximately 2.5 billion plants each year. The plants most likely to transport insects or pathogens that would attack North American trees and shrubs are woody plants. According to Rebecca Epanchin-Niell, during the period FY2010-FY2012, Americans imported each year more than 300 million woody plant units, belonging to about 175 genera.

Marcel Colunga-Garcia and colleagues analyzed plant import data for the period 2010-2012. They studied maritime (ship-borne) containerized plant imports, which represented 64.4 percent of the total value of all “plants for planting” imported into the U.S. in 2010, excluding imports from Mexico and Canada. The types of plants shipped in this way include rooted plants in pots; bare root plants; bulbs and tubers; root fragments, root cuttings, rootlets or rhizomes; rooted cuttings; unrooted cuttings; and budwood/graftwood.

Measuring by the plants’ import values, Colunga and colleagues determined that New York and Los Angeles metropolitan areas together import 60 percent of these plants; not all plant imports are routed through Miami – as is often assumed.

Second, these data show which states are the ultimate destination for relatively large volumes of certain types of plants. Thus, the top five states for receipt of rhododendrons and azaleas were Michigan, Oregon, California, New York, and New Jersey. Michigan received almost twice as many plants (measured by value) as New Jersey. The top three states for receipt of “fruit and nut trees and shrubs” were Florida, Louisiana, and Washington – all at nearly $1 billion or higher. California and North Carolina ranked fourth and fifth, but at values of only $200,000. It is clear from these data that contaminated plants could deliver pests virtually anywhere in the country.

Because my focus is on insects or pathogens that threaten native trees, I wish to separate those from pests that attack primarily herbaceous plants. (Of course, herbaceous plants are important components of ecosystems, as well as premier agricultural and horticultural crops! I do not mean to imply that pest threats to herbaceous plants are not important.)

About nine million of the 300 million woody plants imported to the U.S. each year belong to genera which also contain species of trees native to North America. A larger number of plants – 224 million – were in the same family as a North American native tree (Epanchin-Niell 2017). In other words, about 75% of the woody plants imported each year were in the same family as at least one species of tree native to North America.

Since plants in the same genus are more likely to transport damaging pests that would attack North American trees and shrubs, some have suggested that all such imports should be prohibited temporarily, using the NAPPRA process.

  1. What Do We Know About Pest Arrivals? (Including Detection Difficulties)

Liebhold et al. 2012, relying on 2009 data, found that about 12 percent of incoming plant shipments had symptoms of pests – a rate more than 100 times greater than that for wood packaging — a pathway that has received far more international and U.S. regulatory attention for years. This finding is similar to that of a study in New Zealand, which found that 14 percent of consignments of plants were infested – primarily with pathogens (Epanchin-Niell 2017). Worse, though, Liebhold et al. found that a high percentage of pests associated with a plant shipment is not detected by the inspectors, although APHIS has disputed this finding.

 

At my request, APHIS analysts compiled a list of imported woody plant genera on which pests were detected during fiscal years 2011-2016. Of the 360 quarantine pests listed, only 34 were designated as “disease” (nine percent of the total). I suspect this is significantly below the actual number entering the country.

 

Table 1. Overall number of pest detections recorded*

Fiscal Year # of records # of countries of origin for shipments found to be infested
2011 133 16
2012 110 14
2013 42 12
2014 27 9
2015 45 12
2016 14 5

 

* My totals do not include shipments from Puerto Rico; there were six pest detections on plants from the Commonwealth.

I cannot explain why the total number of detections shown in Table 1 nor – especially – the number of countries from which these infested shipments arrived fell so dramatically in FY2016. If APHIS was focused on inspecting the highest-risk shipments in FY15 and FY16, shouldn’t the number of interceptions have risen?

 

Pathogens are probably undercounted in Table 2 because inspectors experience great difficulty in detecting pathogens during port-of-entry inspections. For example, the genus Phytophthora does not appear in the database of port interceptions, yet we know that Phytophthora are being introduced. Also, the database does not contain the genus Rhododendron. It seems unlikely that no quarantine pests were detected on a shipment of Rhododendron over that six-year period.

 

Table 2. Types of Pests Intercepted

Disease                        34

Insect                           290

Mite                             20

Mollusk                       23

Nematode                    2

 

 

APHIS’s interception records are not designed as a statistically valid sample for determining the total number of pests on shipments because, for example, inspection priorities and resultant inspection criteria  change over time. Since 2015 APHIS has focused more on higher-risk shipments. Before, a specified percentage of all imports was inspected. For these reasons, interception records cannot be used to evaluate the overall risk of pests being imported along with “plants for planting” in any given year. Nor can APHIS’ interception records be compared over time.

Obviously, the numbers of pests detected on a specific type of import will reflect several factors, especially the volume of imports and the intensity of inspection. This bias in the data is reflected in the high number of pest interceptions from Central American countries – from which the U.S. imports very large volumes of plants. Two hundred twenty of the 385 pest detections recorded over the six-year period (57 percent) were on plants shipped from Costa Rica or Guatemala. Canada ranked third, with 35 pest detections (nine percent of the total).

That said, each record reflects a detection of a taxon of animal or pathogen that APHIS considers to be a “plant pest”. Each time a particular species is detected in a shipment, it is recorded. If more than one species is detected in a shipment, each species is reported separately. Therefore,

  • the number of detection records does not equal the number of shipments found to be infested;
  • the records do not reveal the number of specimens of each named taxon – either in an individual shipment or in total; and
  • the number of times a taxon appears in the database does indicate how many shipments were found to be infested by that taxon.

 

 

  1. Principal Threats to North America’s Native Trees and Shrubs

APHIS and I agree that our focus should be on those pests likely to have significant consequences if they are introduced. This risk of impact depends on climate, presence of probable hosts in the U.S., and other factors. Among the highest risk sources of imports for most the U.S. will be temperate countries, like those below. APHIS assigns a lower rating of risk to pests that are likely to be established in the U.S. already or to establish naturally – e.g., pests native to northern Mexico near the U.S. border.

 

Table 3. Main Temperate Countries of Origin for Infested Shipments by Year

FY2011:  Germany, Japan, Turkey, Netherlands, France, Pakistan, Canada, New Zealand

FY2012:  Israel, Canada, South Korea, China, Chile, Netherlands

FY2013:  France, Canada, Belgium, China

FY2014:  China, Canada, South Africa, Portugal

FY2015:  China, Germany, Netherlands, Canada, France, Australia

FY2016:  Canada

 

 

We can also look at the host plants on which pests are being intercepted to think about threats. Table 4 shows these. Presumably, the volume of trade in these genera, from the countries concerned, is sufficient to preclude any listing of these hosts under the NAPPRA regulatory process (see blog from June 21).

 

Table 4. Host Genera on which Pests Were Intercepted, Including only Genera Native

to North America or U.S. Islands or Important in Ornamental Plantings

 Plant genus                 # records — countries of origin — types of pests

Acer                             7 — primarily Canada; also Netherlands & Korea – 2 disease, 4 insect, 1 mite

Buxus                           3 – all Canada – 2 insect, 1 mollusk

Camellia                      2 – France – 1 disease, 1 mite

Chamaecyparis                        1 – Canada; mite

Cycas revoluta             8 – Honduras, Costa Rica, Dom. Rep. – insects

Fagus                          6 – Netherlands, Belgium; insects (aphids primarily)

Hibiscus                       4 – France, Tahiti, Canada – 1 disease, 1 insect, 1 mite, 1 mollusk

Ilex                              3 – Canada & NL – 2 insects, 1 disease

Liriodendron               2 – Canada – insects

Magnolia grandifolia  1 – South Africa – insect

Opuntia                       6 – Mexico – insects

Picea                           7 – Canada – insects (primarily aphids)

Thuja                           6 – Canada – insects

Tilia                             2 – Canada – mollusk

 

  1. What Else Do We Know?

If we look at pests introduced via all pathways, unlike those above, U.S. pest-establishment data show that plant pests continue to be introduced, but at a slower pace in recent years. In its Implementation Plan for Section 10201 of the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008, USDA APHIS said that between 2001 and summer 2008, 212 pests were reported as new to the United States – an average of 30 new pest introductions each year. An APHIS database of plant pests “newly detected” during fiscal years 2009 – 2013 listed approximately 90 new taxa of plant pests as detected during this period – approximately 22 each year. In its annual report for 2016, the agency reported detecting 16 species of plant pests not previously detected in the U.S.

I think that approximately 37 of the 90 “new” pests detected over the 2009-2013 period were probably introduced via imports of plants, cuttings, or cut foliage or flowers. These include all the viruses, fungi, aphids and scales, whiteflies, and mites. I have asked APHIS to give me a database of newly detected plant pests for fiscal years 2014-2015, but the agency has not done so.

Among tree-killing pests introduced over the past 160 years, approximately 69% were introduced via the live plant trade. Liebhold et al. 2012 found that 95% of sap feeders, 89% of foliage-feeding insects, and 47% of pathogens were introduced via this pathway.

Pathogens are probably undercounted here, too, since those that do not cause massive damage are probably overlooked. Of the approximately 90 pests newly detected  2009-2013, ten were fungi, four were viruses, and two were rusts (18 percent of the total).

The genus Phytophthora does not appear in the database of “newly detected” pests. Yet we know that Phytophthora are being introduced. We know that, in 2012 a Phytophthora new to the United States — Phytophthora tentaculata — was detected on nursery-raised herbaceous plants in California. Follow-up studies have detected several additional Phytophthora taxa that might be new to the United States. One, P. quercina, had previously been reported only in Europe and Western Asia. The other putatively new taxa are still being evaluated as to whether they are previously unknown species or hybrids, and whether they are native to California or elsewhere in the United States, or are of alien origin.

 

The presence of the EU1 strain of Phytophthora ramorum in several nurseries in Washington, California, and most recently Oregon is also evidence that introductions of this species have continued since it was designated as a regulated pest in 2003.

 

Another pathogen that has apparently not been included in the official data is the fungus which causes rapid ʻōhiʻa death – a strain of Ceratocystis fimbriata. Scientists do not yet know whether this strain was introduced directly to Hawai`i on a recently-imported, asymptomatic plant; or whether the strain evolved from one or more different strains introduced to Hawaiʻi recently or longer ago.

 

Can you help evaluate the level of risk associated with various plant taxa, types, and origins? and other matters that might be extracted from these data. Perhaps we can agree on which pest species cause greatest concern; decide which pathways most need new policy approaches; and reach conclusions based on holes in the data. Can we use the data on pest taxa that underlie this summary – data which I have – to strengthen the case for USDA to promptly finalize revision of its “plants for planting”  (“Q-37”) regulations (see my blog from June 21 and Chapter 4 of the Fading Forests report?

 

Contact me to explore how we might work together.

 

Posted by Faith Campbell

 

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.

 

SOURCES

 

Colunga-Garcia M, Haack RA, Magarey RD, Borchert DM (2013) Understanding trade pathways to target biosecurity surveillance. In: Kriticos DJ, Venette RC (Eds) Advancing risk assessment models to address climate change, economics and uncertainty. NeoBiota 18: 103–118. doi: 10.3897/neobiota.18.4019

 

Epanchin-Niel, R.S. 2017. Presentation to 28th USDA Interagency Research Forum on Invasive Species. January 2017.

 

Eschen, R., K. Britton, E. Brockerhoff, T. Burgess, V. Dalley, R.S. Epanchin-Niell, K. Gupta, G. Hardy, Y. Huang, M. Kenis, E. Kimani, H.-M. Li, S. Olsen, R. Ormrod, W. Otieno, C. Sadof, E. Tadeau, M. Theyse. 2015. International variation in phytosanitary legislation and regulations governing importation of plants for planting. Environmental Science and Policy 51 (2015) 228-237

Liebhold, A.M., E.G. Brockerhoff, L.J. Garrett, J.L. Parke, and K.O. Britton. 2012. Live Plant Imports: the Major Pathway for Forest Insect and Pathogen Invasions of the US. www.frontiersinecology.org

 

 

Lobby House and Senate Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittees in support of increasing funding for two crucial APHIS programs

 

On May 19 I posted a blog asking you to lobby Congress in support of maintaining current funding levels for two programs aimed to eradicating or containing tree-killing pests.  These are the “tree and wood pest” and “specialty crop” programs operated by the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

At the time, I had not seen the President’s budget proposal. Now I have seen the President’s budget – and, as anticipated, it calls for steep cuts in the “tree and wood pest” program. The President calls for cutting this program by 44% — from $54 million to $30 million. Specifically, the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) eradication program would be cut by approximately 50% — $20.770. The emerald ash borer (EAB) containment program would also be cut by half — $3.127 million.

The President’s budget justifies these severe cuts by saying that states, localities, and industries benefit from eradication or containment of the ALB and EAB, so they should help pay for the containment program.  The Office of Management and Budget states that other beneficiaries should pay 50% of program costs.

For whatever reason, the budget does not propose to cut APHIS’ efforts to prevent spread of the European gypsy moth.

In reality, states, localities, and industries are very unlikely to make up the difference in funding. We should remind the Congress that already, local governments across the country are spending more than $3 billion each year to remove trees on city property killed by non-native pests. Homeowners are spending $1 billion to remove and replace trees on their properties and are absorbing an additional $1.5 billion in reduced property values and reducing the quality of their neighborhoods. (See Aukema et al. article listed below.)

ash tree killed by EAB; Ann Arbor, MI; courtesy of Major Hefje

 

Cuts of the size proposed by the President’s budget will undermine the programs completely. Such a result is particularly alarming given the record of success in eradicating ALB populations – when resources are sufficient; and the urgent need to complete eradication programs in Massachusetts, New York, and Ohio. As I said in May, the ALB program has succeeded in eradicating 85% of the infestation in New York. (APHIS has just announced that a section of the borough of Queens is free of ALB.) However, the infestation in Massachusetts has been only 34% eradicated; that in Ohio has been only 15% eradicated. Crippling the program now will expose urban and rural forests throughout the Northeast to severe damage by this insect, which attacks a wide range of species.

The importance of continuing the EAB containment program has been re-emphasized by scientists’ recent determination that EAB can attack commercial olive trees as well as all species of ash.

The budget also does not recognize the need for APHIS to expand its program to address other tree-killing pests, including the spotted lanternfly, and polyphagous and Kuroshio shot hole borers.The shot hole borers attack hundreds of tree species, including California sycamore, cottonwoods, and several oaks. Many known hosts are either found across the Southeast, or belong to genera that are found across the Southeast – so the threat is national. The spotted lanternfly – now established in Pennsylvania — threatens agriculture – especially grapes, apples, plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds; as well as oak, walnut, poplar, and pine trees.

More than 30 tree-attacking pests have been introduced in recent years. Additional species from these introductions might also require APHIS-led programs; one example is the velvet longhorned beetle.

velvet longhorned beetle; bugwood.org

The budget calls also for a 6% cut on the “specialty crops” program – from $158 million to $148 million.  It is not clear how such a reduction would affect APHIS’ program to prevent spread of the sudden oak death (SOD) via movement of nursery stock [link to earlier blogs & Gallery]. The SOD program has been funded at approximately $5 million in recent years.

Finally, additional challenges lie ahead because it is likely that new tree-killing pests will be introduced with rising import volumes. Each year, border inspectors detect more than 800 import shipments with pests infesting the crates and pallets. These represent a small proportion of the actual risk; one analysis estimated that 13,000 shipments with infested packaging enter the country each year. APHIS must have sufficient resources to respond when the inevitable newly introduced pests are detected.

CBP agriculture specialists in Laredo, Texas, examine a wooden pallet for signs of insect infestation. [Note presence of an apparent ISPM stamp on the side of the pallet] Photo by Rick Pauza
SOURCE

Aukema, J.E., B. Leung, K. Kovacs, C. Chivers, K. O. Britton, J. Englin, S.J. Frankel, R. G. Haight, T. P. Holmes, A. Liebhold, D.G. McCullough, B. Von Holle.. 2011. Economic Impacts of Non-Native Forest Insects in the Continental United States PLoS One September 2011 (Volume 6 Issue 9)

Posted by Faith Campbell

We welcome comments that supplement or correct factual information, suggest new approaches, or promote thoughtful consideration. We post comments that disagree with us — but not those we judge to be not civil or inflammatory.