Mountain pine beetle 2018243 224833005 2008-07-10T16:52:22Z 67.81.38.165 /* External links */ {{Taxobox | name = Mountain pine beetle | image = Dendroctonus ponderosae.jpg | image_width = 250px | image_caption = Adult mountain pine beetle<br>''Dendroctonus ponderosae'' | regnum = [[Animal]]ia | phylum = [[Arthropod]]a | classis = [[Insect]]a | ordo = [[beetle|Coleoptera]] | familia = [[Scolytidae]] | subfamilia = [[Bark beetle|Scolytinae]] | genus = ''[[Dendroctonus]]'' | species = '''''D. ponderosae''''' | binomial = ''Dendroctonus ponderosae'' | binomial_authority = Hopkins, 1902 }} [[Image:Infested tree.jpg|right|thumb|A [[lodgepole pine]] tree infested by the mountain pine beetle, with visible "pitch outs".]] {{wikispecies|Dendroctonus ponderosae|Mountain pine beetle}} The '''mountain pine beetle''', ''Dendroctonus ponderosae'', is a species of [[bark beetle]] native to the forests of western [[North America]] from [[Mexico]] to central [[British Columbia]]. It has a hard black shell and measures about 5 millimetres. Mountain pine [[beetles]] inhabit [[pine]]s, particularly the [[Ponderosa Pine]], [[Lodgepole Pine]], [[Scots Pine]] and [[Limber Pine]]. The [[bristlecone pine]]s and [[pinyon pine]]s are less commonly attacked. During early stages of an outbreak, attacks are limited largely to trees under stress from injury, poor site conditions, fire damage, overcrowding, root disease or old age. As beetle populations increase, the beetles attack most large trees in the outbreak area. ==Tree infestations== The beetles kill the trees by boring through the bark into the [[phloem]] layer on which they feed and in which eggs are laid. Pioneer female beetles initiate attacks, and produce pheromones which attract other beetles and results in mass attack. The trees respond to attack by increasing their resin output in order to discourage or kill the beetles, but the beetles carry blue stain fungi which, if established, will block the tree resin response. Over time (usually within 2 weeks of attack), the trees are overwhelmed as the phloem layer is damaged enough to cut off the flow of water and nutrients. In the end, the trees starve to death, and the damage can be easily seen even from the air in the form of reddened needles. Entire groves of trees after an outbreak will appear reddish for this reason. Usually older trees die faster. After particularly long and hot summers mountain pine beetle population can increase dramatically which can lead to the deforestation of large areas. ==Life cycle== Approximately two weeks following [[oviposition]], pine beetles hatch as white [[larvae]]. They dig into tree bark where they spend the winter, then grow up to 7mm long in the spring. The [[pupa]]l stage ends in the late spring or early summer, and from mid-July to mid-August, the beetles leave their tunnels and fly to new trees. Female beetles release [[pheromone]]s to attract males and encourage mass attacks.<ref> [http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/forests/health/insects/mountainpinebeetle.aspx Mountain Pine Beetle], Alberta Sustainable Resource Development</ref> The lifespan of a single pine beetle is about one year.<ref>[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/mountain_pine_beetle/facts.htm Mountain Pine Beetle - Ministry of Forests and Range - Province of British Columbia<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Temperatures down to −30 °C to −40 °C (−22 °F to −40 °F) for at least several days, or at least twelve hours of −40 or lower, kills most mountain pine beetles. ==Current outbreak== The current outbreak of mountain pine beetles is ten times larger than previous outbreaks.<ref name="beetles">{{cite web |url=http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Beetles_may_doom_Canadas_carbon_reduction_target_study_999.html |title=Beetles may doom Canada's carbon reduction target: study |accessdate=2008-04-28 |format= |date=2008-04-23 |work= }}</ref> The recently mild winters have [[Alberta]] forestry officials worried because the beetles will have a devastating impact on an ecosystem which may be ill-equipped naturally to deal with it. Fortunately, a [[cold snap]] in early 2008 is hoped to have dropped the pine beetle population to more manageable levels. <ref>{{cite news|url=http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnists/Platt_Michael/2008/03/13/4988766-sun.php|publisher=''[[Calgary Sun]]''|title=Millions of tiny, pine beetle corpses!|last=Platt|first=Michael|date=2008-03-13}}</ref> However, preliminary results from the summer of 2008 indicate that the cold winter was less successful at killing pine beetle than predicted. ==Effect on carbon cycle== Researchers from the [[Canadian Forest Service]] have studied the relationship between the [[carbon cycle]] and forest fires, logging and tree deaths. They concluded that by 2020 the pine beetle outbreak will have released 270 megatonnes of [[carbon dioxide]] into the atmosphere from Canadian forests. There is yet to be an accepted study of the carbon cycle effect over a future period of time for North American forests.<ref name="beetles"> </ref> ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== {{commonscat|Dendroctonus ponderosae}} *[http://www.economist.com/world/la/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11671362 Canada's Forests Beetle Attack - The Economist] *[http://www.cbs4denver.com/local/Air.Curtain.Burner.2.698472.html Rocky Nat'l Park Fights Pine Beetles With Burner - CBS4Denver] *[http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/jan/15/beetle-infestation-get-much-worse Deaths of trees 'catastrophic' - Rocky Mountain News] *[http://pherotech.xplorex.com/page213.htm Pherotech International, Mountain Pine Beetle and other Bark Beetle controls through use of Integrated Pest Management Plans] *[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/28/AR2006022801772.html Washington Post article: 'Rapid Warming' Spreads Havoc in Canada's Forests] *[http://mpb.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/index_e.html Natural Resources Canada site on the Mountain Pine Beetle] *[http://denver.yourhub.com/AuroraSouth/Stories/News/Politics/Story~319142.aspx Rocky Mountain pine beetle epidemic devastating to Colorado forests] *[http://www.srd.gov.ab.ca/forests/health/i_mpinebeetle.html Detailed information from Alberta Forest Health about the mountain pine beetle's life cycle and what to look for in beetle infestations] *[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfd/library/lib_MPB.htm British Columbia Ministry of Forests and Range Library - Bibliography of Mountain Pine Beetle Publications] *[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/mountain_pine_beetle/ British Columbia Forestry Ministry - Mountain Pine Beetle Action Plan, information and FAQ] *[http://www.davidsuzuki.org/Forests/Canada/BC/Beetle/ David Suzuki Foundation - Call for ecosystem-based management] *[http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/bcparks/conserve/pine_beetle/pine_beetle.html British Columbia Ministry of the Environment Mountain Pine Beetle FAQ] *[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/bcmpb/BCMPB.v3.BeetleProjection.Update.pdf BC MPB outbreak projection update w/ 2005 data] *[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/mountain_pine_beetle/2006_IBM.pdf Provincial aerial survey of MPB 2006] *[http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/bcmpb/BCMPB.v3.2012Kill.pdf Map of projected percentage of pine killed in British Columbia by 2012] *[http://www.genomebc.ca/whatnew_press/press_releases/mountainpinebeetlejan10-08.htm Genomics project on the three interacting organisms (beetle, fungus, and tree)] [[Category:Woodboring beetles]] [[Category:Beetles]]<!--taxonomic cat; should only be replaced by more precise taxonomy--> [[Category:Beetles of North America]] [[Category:Species described in the 20th century]] *[http://www.grandealberta.com/mountain-pine/ Grande Alberta Economic Region's Mountain Pine Beetle pages] *[http://www.grandealberta.com/mountain-pine/documents/20070614mpbinitiativephasetwobusinesscasetowardstransformationfinal.pdf Towards Transformation: The Economic, Social and Environmental Costs of the Mountain Pine Beetle in the Grande Alberta Economic Region] *[http://flickr.com/groups/mountain_pine_beetle/ Flickr MPB image pool] [[de:Bergkiefernkäfer]] [[fr:Dendroctonus ponderosae]]