Forest treatments such as thinning and prescribed fire are recommended to reduce the risk of large fires and bark beetle outbreaks. However, little is known about the effects of such treatments on the complex interactions between tree defense, bark beetles and their predators and parasitoids. To test the effects of thinning and burning treatments, the Fire-Fire Surrogate study has several sites nationwide with four treatments: thin and burn, thin only, burn only, and untreated control. One such study site is located in the Lubrecht Experimental Forest near Missoula, MT. Treatments at Lubrecht were randomly assigned to three blocks, thinned from below in the winter of 2001 and burned in May and June of 2002. We measured resin flow in ponderosa pine in July and August 2002. We used sticky traps to monitor alightment on ponderosa pine of bark beetles and related predators and parasitoids. These traps were collected every week from mid-June through late August 2002. Treatment and seasonal effects on the relationships between tree defense, Dendroctonus spp. and associated predators and parasitoids will be discussed.
Species 1: Coleoptera Scolytidae Dendroctonus ponderosae (mountain pine beetle)
Species 2: Coleoptera Scolytidae Dendroctonus valens (red turpentine beetle)
Keywords: bark beetles, fire-fire surrogate
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