Complex dynamics underlie bark beetle eruptions
Monday, June 2, 2008 - 12:07
in Earth & Climate
Forest management that favors single tree species and climate change are just two of the critical factors making forests throughout western North America more susceptible to infestation by bark beetles, according to an article published in the June 2008 BioScience. Bark beetle epidemics have become more extensive and frequent in recent years as winter temperatures have risen, and an eruption of mountain pine beetles is currently devastating lodgepole pines throughout the mountainous West.