A newly detected exotic Ambrosia beetle in Argentina: Euwallacea interjectus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

An exotic species of ambrosia beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) of Asian origin has been detected recently in Argentina. Euwallacea interjectus (Blandford) has been collected infesting cultivated poplars in the Paraná Delta region. Identification was based on morphology and on DNA sequences of the COI gene. This finding adds to the increasing number of recent introductions of exotic ambrosia beetles into South America.Fil: Landi, Lucas. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales. Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Braccini, Celina Laura. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Centro de Investigación de Recursos Naturales. Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Knížek, Milos. Forestry and Game Management Research Institute; República ChecaFil: Pereyra, Vanina Antonella. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas; ArgentinaFil: Marvaldi, Adriana. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Entomología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; Argentin

A newly detected exotic ambrosia beetle in Argentina: Euwallacea interjectus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae)

An exotic species of ambrosia beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) of Asian origin has been detected recently in Argentina. Euwallacea interjectus (Blandford) has been collected infesting cultivated poplars in the Paraná Delta region. Identification was based on morphology and on DNA sequences of the COI gene. This finding adds to the increasing number of recent introductions of exotic ambrosia beetles into South America.Instituto de Recursos BiológicosFil: Landi, Lucas. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Braccini, Celina Laura. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Recursos Biológicos; ArgentinaFil: Knížek, Milos. Forestry and Game Management Research Institute; República ChecaFil: Pereyra, Vanina Antonella. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Entomología; ArgentinaFil: Marvaldi, Adriana Elena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Investigaciones de las Zonas Áridas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Entomología; Argentin

A Newly Detected Exotic Ambrosia Beetle in Argentina : Euwallacea interjectus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae)

An exotic species of ambrosia beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) of Asian origin has been detected recently in Argentina. Euwallacea interjectus (Blandford) has been collected infesting cultivated poplars in the Paraná Delta region. Identification was based on morphology and on DNA sequences of the COI gene. This finding adds to the increasing number of recent introductions of exotic ambrosia beetles into South America.Recientemente se detectó por primera vez en Argentina una especie exótica de escarabajo de Ambrosía (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) de origen asiático. Euwallacea interjectus (Blandford) fue colectada afectando cultivos de álamo en la región del Delta del Río Paraná. Su identificación se basó en la morfología y en las secuencias de ADN del gen COI. Este hallazgo se suma al número cada vez mayor de introducciones recientes de escarabajos de Ambrosía exóticos en Sudamérica.Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Muse

Ips acuminatus

Ips acuminatus (Gyllenhal, 1827) Material examined. Czechia (Ac1, 2). Norway (Ac6, Ipsacu16, 17). Russia, Krasnodar Krai, Yatyrgvarta Mountain, Caucasian Nature Reserve, Eastern Forestry (elev. 1750 m), host, Pinus sosnowskyi, 3.VIII.2003, coll. Mandelshtam (Ipsacu14, 15); St. Petersburg (Ipsacu18, 19, 20); Zabaykalsky Krai, Chita (Ipsacu23, 24). Male. Frons flat, slightly convex, shining, small pair often flanked with additional tubercles in the middle, above the epistoma, densely granulato-punctate with small central shining smooth unpunctured area in the middle between and just above a pair of tubercles. Suturae on antennal club slightly bisinuate, sometimes nearly straight. Elytral interstriae wide, at least twice the width of striae, flat, all uniseriately irregularly punctured the entire length, punctures slightly deeper and slightly smaller than striae. Striae deep, densely punctate, distance between the punctures smaller than puncture diameter. Elytral declivity, 1st spine on 2nd interstriae, 2nd spine on 3rd interstriae, 3rd spine on 4th interstriae, 2nd and 3rd spine without a common base, distance between the 1st, 2nd and 3rd spines equal. 3rd spine, base wide, narrowed towards the bifid apex, whole spine directed posteriad, upper part of the bifid process of the 3rd spine shorter than lower process. Declivital disc shining, irregularly and not densely punctured. Outline of the elytral edge with continuous rounded costa from the apex to 7th interstriae, tubercle-like process on the elytral apex bent dorsally. Females. Similar to males, except the 2nd and 3rd declivital spines subequal.Published as part of Knížek, Milos & Cognato, Anthony I., 2017, Validity of Ips chinensis Kurentzov & Kononov confirmed with DNA data, pp. 229-235 in Zoological Systematics 42 (2) on page 233, DOI: 10.11865/zs.201712, http://zenodo.org/record/461764

Sub-fossil bark beetles as indicators of past disturbance events in temperate Picea abies mountain forests

Temperate mountain forests have experienced an increase in frequency and severity of natural disturbances (e.g., droughts, fires, windstorms and insect outbreaks) in recent decades due to climate and environmental change. Outbreaks of bark beetles have caused significant dieback of conifer forests in Central Europe and it is essential to model and predict the potential severity of future bark beetle outbreaks. However, to predict future bark beetle activity, historical baseline information is required to contextualize the magnitude of current and potential future outbreaks. A fossil beetle record from a forest hollow in the Tatra Mountains, Slovakia; one of the best-preserved national parks in Central Europe, was produced to identify insect outbreaks during the last millennia. Sub-fossil bark beetle remains were compared with parallel pollen and charcoal to assess whether peaks in conifer bark beetle remains correspond with indications of disturbance documented in historical or sedimentary fossil records. Three peaks in bark beetle remains were detected (1) post-2004, (2) AD 1140–1440, and (3) AD 930–1030. The abundance of species Pityogenes chalcographus and Pityophthorus pityographus in the two top samples can be linked directly to large bark beetle outbreaks in the High Tatra Mountains after 2004. P. chalcographus and P. pityographus are also the abundant species in the second peak (AD 1140–1440) while the third peak (AD 930–1030) consists of the species Polygraphus poligraphus. The most prominent conifer bark beetle in Central Europe, Ips typographus, was found to be present in most of the samples but always at very low numbers. It is plausible that P. chalcographus and P. pityographus fossils might be useful proxies for past conifer bark beetle outbreaks in Central Europe, as they occur together with fossils of I. typographus but appear to be well-preserved. A significant correlation was found between primary bark beetles and macroscopic charcoal densities in the sediment, highlighting the complex interactions between disturbance agents, bark beetles and fire, in this long-term regime of natural disturbances. Our 1400-year disturbance record shows how bark beetle outbreaks have been an important component of the regional natural disturbance regime for over a millennium and have intensified with increasing anthropogenic activity. Bark beetle outbreaks are likely one of the drivers promoting the future ecological stability of the temperate conifer ecosystem over decades to centuries

Integration of dendrochronological and palaeoecological disturbance reconstructions in temperate mountain forests

Disentangling the long-term changes in forest disturbance dynamics provides a basis for predicting the forest responses to changing environmental conditions. The combination of multidisciplinary records can offer more robust reconstructions of past forest disturbance dynamics. Here we link disturbance histories of the central European mountain spruce forest obtained from dendrochronological and palaeoecological records (fossil pollen, sedimentary charcoal, bark beetle remains and geochemistry) using a small glacial lake and the surrounding forest in the Šumava National Park (Czech Republic). Dendrochronological reconstructions of disturbance were created for 300-year-long records from 6 study plots with a minimum of 35 trees analyzed for the abrupt growth increases (releases) and rapid early growth rates, both indicative of disturbance events. High43 resolution analysis of lake sediments were used to reconstruct 800-year long changes in forest composition and landscape openness (fossil pollen), past fire events (micro- and macroscopic charcoal), bark beetle occurrence(fossil bark beetle remains), and erosion episodes (geochemical signals in the sediment) potentially resulting from disturbance events. Tree-ring data indicate that disturbances occurred regularly through the last three centuries and identify a most intensive period of disturbances between 1780 and 1830 CE. Geochemical erosion markers (e.g. K, Zr, % inorganic) show greater flux of catchment sediment and soils in the periods 1250–1400 and 1450–1500 CE, before a substantial shift to a more erosive regime 1600–1850 and 1900 CE onwards. Pollen records demonstrate relatively small changes in forest composition during last 800 years until the beginning of the 20th century, when there was decrease in Picea. Fossil bark beetle remains indicate continuous presence of bark beetles from 1620s to 1800s, and charcoal records suggest that more frequent fires occurred during the 18th 55 century. Each of the dendrochronological, palaeoecological and sedimentological records provide a unique perspective on forest disturbance dynamics, and combined offer a more robust and complete record of disturbance history. We demonstrate that sedimentary proxies originating from the lake catchment mirror the forest disturbance dynamics recorded in the tree-rings. However, the multidisciplinary records likely record forest disturbances at different spatial and temporal scales revealing different disturbances characteristics. Integrating these multidisciplinary datasets demonstrates a promising way to obtain more complete understanding of long-term disturbance dynamics. However, integrating datasets with variable spatial and temporal influence remains challenging. Our results indicated that multiple disturbance factors, such as windstorms, bark beetle outbeaks and fires, may occur simultaneously creating a complex disturbance regime in mountain forests, which should be considered in forest management and conservation strategies