Research Mentor(s)
Flower, Aquila
Description
Insect outbreaks are one of the important natural disturbance processes in forested ecosystems due to their tendency to periodically restructure stand composition and provide dynamic fluctuation via trophic interactions. Multiple agencies across various jurisdictions collect annual forest health inventory data via aerial detection survey (ADS) mapping, allowing trends in forest disease and pest prevalence to be explored across both space and time. While these data sets are a powerful tool for research and management, the data is often recorded and stored in regionally differing formats and is not easily accessible to researchers or the public. The lack of cohesive broad-scale datasets prevents analysis of natural disturbance dynamics across ecological regions. This project combines ADS data from adjoined management regions spanning Washington, Oregon and British Columbia encompassing the time period between 1980 and 2000 focusing on Western spruce budworm (WSB) (Choristoneura occidentalis), a prolific and widespread defoliator of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). This compiled dataset will allow preliminary analysis of a natural process unbound by artificial boundaries and potentially provide new insights into WSB outbreak dynamics in the Pacific Northwest.
Document Type
Event
Start Date
15-5-2019 9:00 AM
End Date
15-5-2019 5:00 PM
Location
Carver Gym (Bellingham, Wash.)
Department
Environmental Studies
Genre/Form
student projects, posters
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Western spruce budworm--Northwest, Pacific; Data sets
Geographic Coverage
Northwest, Pacific
Type
Image
Keywords
insect outbreaks
Rights
Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Included in
Two decades of Western spruce budworm outbreaks in the Pacific Northwest
Carver Gym (Bellingham, Wash.)
Insect outbreaks are one of the important natural disturbance processes in forested ecosystems due to their tendency to periodically restructure stand composition and provide dynamic fluctuation via trophic interactions. Multiple agencies across various jurisdictions collect annual forest health inventory data via aerial detection survey (ADS) mapping, allowing trends in forest disease and pest prevalence to be explored across both space and time. While these data sets are a powerful tool for research and management, the data is often recorded and stored in regionally differing formats and is not easily accessible to researchers or the public. The lack of cohesive broad-scale datasets prevents analysis of natural disturbance dynamics across ecological regions. This project combines ADS data from adjoined management regions spanning Washington, Oregon and British Columbia encompassing the time period between 1980 and 2000 focusing on Western spruce budworm (WSB) (Choristoneura occidentalis), a prolific and widespread defoliator of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). This compiled dataset will allow preliminary analysis of a natural process unbound by artificial boundaries and potentially provide new insights into WSB outbreak dynamics in the Pacific Northwest.