{"id":1019,"date":"2017-04-18T17:02:12","date_gmt":"2017-04-18T21:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/?page_id=1019"},"modified":"2017-07-13T13:08:43","modified_gmt":"2017-07-13T17:08:43","slug":"beech-bark-disease","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/invasives\/beech-bark-disease\/","title":{"rendered":"Beech Bark Disease"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A beech tree with beech bark disease<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Summary<\/h2>\n

Beech bark disease poses an enormous threat to the American Beech<\/a>, and is widespread in the eastern United States and Canada. \u00a0It is caused by two invasive species: the beech scale insect, as well as a fungus, most commonly\u00a0the\u00a0Nectria coccinea\u00a0<\/em>species. \u00a0<\/em>Beech scale was first introduced into Nova Scotia in 1890. \u00a0It later spread throughout much of the United States and Canada, causing beech bark disease to develop in much of these regions. \u00a0The disease occurs when the bark of a tree is initially attacked by the beech scale insect, and is then ultimately destroyed by the fungus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Stages of Beech Bark Disease<\/h2>\n

Beech bark disease can take from three to six years to develop after beech scale invades the forest. \u00a0The disease develops in three stages:\u00a0the advancing front, the killing front,<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0the aftermath zone<\/strong>. \u00a0During the\u00a0advancing front,\u00a0the tree becomes\u00a0infested by the beech scale insect. During this stage, the beech scale damages the tree's bark. \u00a0The following stage is known as the\u00a0killing front, which occurs when the\u00a0Nectria\u00a0<\/em>fungus infects trees through the damaged bark caused by the beech scale insect. This typically occurs a few\u00a0years after beech scale invades the forest. \u00a0Finally, the aftermath zone occurs when trees die. \u00a0Large trees might remain in the forest if they are resistant to the beech scale and\/or\u00a0Nectria\u00a0<\/em>fungus.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Beech scale insect<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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A tree infected by the Nectria coccinea<\/em> fungus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Visual Signs<\/h2>\n

There are several visual signs that beech bark disease is present in a forest. \u00a0Blotches of a white, waxy covering on a tree's trunk may indicate the infestation of the beech scale insect. \u00a0This is caused by a white wooly wax that covers the insect\u2019s body. \u00a0After beech scale becomes established, beech bark disease is almost inevitable. \u00a0Later indicators of a\u00a0Nectria\u00a0<\/em>infection include red or brownish spots on the bark of a tree, in addition to yellow foliage. \u00a0The red or brownish spots represent the\u00a0Nectria<\/em>\u00a0itself on the tree. \u00a0During the aftermath zone, trees may be broken by strong winds. \u00a0This is known as beech snap.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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Impacts on the Ecosystem<\/h2>\n

The ecosystems of forests are strongly impacted by this disease, as a multitude of birds and animals rely on the American Beech species for food and habitat. \u00a0Black bears, grey squirrels, chipmunks, turkeys, and deer are just a few examples of animals that feed on beech nuts. \u00a0Additionally, several species of hawks and raptors nest in beech trees.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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An example of beech snap<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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References<\/h2>\n

Houston, D. R. (1998). Beech bark disease<\/em>. Retrieved April 3, 2017, from https:\/\/www.nrs.fs.fed.us\/pubs\/jrnl\/1998\/1998_exotic-pests-papers\/houston_1998-exoticpests.pdf<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Houston, D. R., & O'Brien, J. T. (1983). Beech bark disease. Retrieved April 3, 2017, from U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service website: https:\/\/www.na.fs.fed.us\/spfo\/pubs\/fidls\/beechbark\/fidl-beech.htm<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

McCullough, D. G., Heyd, R. L., & O'Brian, J. G. (2005, March). Biology and management of beech bark disease<\/em>. Retrieved April 3, 2017, from http:\/\/msue.anr.msu.edu\/uploads\/files\/e2746.pdf<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Percival, G. C. (n.d.). Plant health care program<\/em>. Retrieved April 3, 2017, from https:\/\/www.bartlett.com\/resources\/Beech-Bark-Disease_UK.pdf<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Image Credits<\/h2>\n

A beech tree with beech bark disease: \"beech bark disease (Nectria coccinea)<\/a>\" by Andrej Kunca, National Forest Centre - Slovakia, Bugwood.org<\/a>,\u00a0licensed under CC BY-NC\u00a03.0 <\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Beech scale insect: \"Beech scale nymph<\/a>\" by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, licensed under the public domain<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

A tree infected by the Nectria coccinea fungus: \"Nectria coccinea fruiting bodies<\/a>\" by\u00a0Joseph O'Brien, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org<\/a>, licensed under\u00a0CC BY 3.0<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

An example of beech snap: \"Beech snap<\/a>\" by\u00a0U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service,\u00a0licensed under\u00a0the\u00a0public domain<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SummaryBeech bark disease poses an enormous threat to the American Beech, and is widespread in the eastern United States and Canada. \u00a0It is caused by two invasive species: the beech scale insect, as well as a fungus, most commonly\u00a0the\u00a0Nectria coccinea\u00a0species. \u00a0Beech scale was first introduced into Nova Scotia in 1890. \u00a0It later spread throughout much of the United States and Canada, causing beech bark disease to develop in much of these regions. \u00a0The disease occurs when the bark of a tree is initially attacked by the beech scale insect, and is then ultimately destroyed by the fungus.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"parent":240,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/template-full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1019","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1019"}],"version-history":[{"count":86,"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1019\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3977,"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1019\/revisions\/3977"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mdocs.skidmore.edu\/crandallparktrees\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}