next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects
Hi, For those of you who may be interested, I enclose the following press release by Friends of Point Pleasant Park. Best wishes, Christopher Majka - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - PRESS RELEASE Friends of Point Pleasant Park Halifax, Nova Scotia Contact: Christopher Majka (902) 425-3725 July 31, 2000 For Immediate Release Cutting Program Threatens Predators and Parasites of Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetles Friends of Point Pleasant Park today are releasing the results of their own independent investigations into predators and parasites of the Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetle (BSLB) in Point Pleasant Park. "Contrary to early assertions that there were no predators of the BSLB, Point Pleasant Park virtually teems with a constellation of predators and parasites specifically known to prey on the Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetle (Tetropium fuscum)," said spokesperson Christopher Majka. " Our discussions with scientists here and abroad, our investigations of the published literature, and most importantly, our observations in Point Pleasant Park itself, confirm that there are already many well-documented predators and parasites at work." In Europe the research by the Polish Institute of Forestry Research found 19 species of Ichneumon and Braconid Wasps which were predators of the Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetle, with infestation rates as high as 70%. Both of these groups of wasps are exceedingly abundant in Canada. 830 species of Braconids have been recorded here and over 2,000 species of Ichneumon Wasps are known in the country. Moreover both of these wasps are abundant in Point Pleasant Park. "On many occasions I've observed at least three different species of these wasps actually patrolling the surfaces of infected trees," says Majka, an ecologist by training with a background in entomology and invertebrates. "The wasps listen for the sound of larvae boring under the bark and then inject an egg into the larval beetle. The young wasps then grow and kill the larval beetles." One of the most authoritative reference on wood-boring beetles, Gorton Linsley's book "The Cerambycidae of North America," also notes several species of both of these wasps known to parasitize the wood-boring beetles found in Point Pleasant Park. In addition to wasps, the Polish studies singled out woodpeckers (particularly the Great Spotted Woodpecker), as significant predators of BSLB. This woodpecker is very closely related to the Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers, which are commonly found in Point Pleasant Park. Says Majka, "On several occasions I've observed Downy Woodpeckers and Red Breasted Nuthatches feeding very energetically on precisely the trees in the Park that are threatened with cutting." An even more exciting recent discovery is that the Park is teeming with a different kind of beetle, the so-called "Checkered Beetle," Thanasimus dubius, both the adults and larvae of which are known to be voracious predators of wood- boring beetles in general and of the genus Tetropium in particular. "Recently in observing the beetles attracted to the bait logs left by the CFIA in the Park I counted over 120 individuals of Thanasium dubius - by far and away the most abundant beetle I could readily observe in the Park," says Majka Authoritative texts such as the "Manual of Common Beetles of Eastern North America" note that: "The larvae live within the burrows of wood-borers or under bark and are very useful in keeping these and bark beetles in check," and that, "both larvae and adults are predators on bark beetles in dead and dying spruce, pine and elm trees." Gorton Linsley's work specifically indicates that the very closely related checkered beetle Thanasimus trifasciatus is known specifically as a predator of Tetropium beetles. "All of these studies and observations are a strong indication that the predator and parasite set already known to be highly effective in controlling wood-boring beetle numbers is alive and well and living in Point Pleasant Park," says Majka. "In fact this is an indication that the extremely low numbers of adult BSLB that the CFIA Task Force has been finding are as a result of the population being kept in check by all these insects and birds. The current cutting program is doubly tragic since in addition to destroying any wood-boring beetles in the park (including the three native species know to be there), it will also be particularly devastating to these Checkered Beetles which live within the burrows in the trees themselves." -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- The preceding message was posted on the Sustainable Maritimes mailing list (sust-mar). http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/lists/sust-mar -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Sponsors: Chebucto Community Net http://www.chebucto.ns.ca Sierra Club - Chebucto Group http://www.sierraclub.ca Volunteer moderator: Paul Falvo mailto:sust-mar-owner@chebucto.ns.ca To submit a message to sust-mar, please send it to: mailto:sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca PLEASE SEND MESSAGES TO SUST-MAR IN PLAIN TEXT ONLY MESSAGES CONTAINING HTML (MIME) CANNOT BE POSTED
next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects