Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga Canadensis (L.) Carr
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports 2016 Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr Richard M. Turcotte Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd Recommended Citation Turcotte, Richard M., "Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr" (2016). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 6836. https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/6836 This Dissertation is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by the The Research Repository @ WVU with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Dissertation in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you must obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/ or on the work itself. This Dissertation has been accepted for inclusion in WVU Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports collection by an authorized administrator of The Research Repository @ WVU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr. by Richard M. Turcotte Dissertation submitted to the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Plant and Soil Science - Entomology Approved by Yong-Lak Park, Ph.D., Co-Chair Linda Butler, Ph.D. Co-Chair Bradley Onken, M.S. William MacDonald, Ph.D. James Amrine, Ph.D. Ray Hicks, Ph.D. Division of Plant and Soil Sciences Morgantown, West Virginia 2016 Keywords: Eastern hemlock, hemlock woolly adelgid, imidacloprid, arboreal arthropods Copyright 2016 Richard M. Turcotte ABSTRACT Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr. Richard M Turcotte Eastern hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr (Pinales: Pinaceae), is an important component of both the urban and forest landscape of the eastern United States. Eastern hemlock has been heavily impacted by the introduction of the hemlock woolly adelgid, Adelges tsugae (Annand) (Hemiptera: Adelgidae). Two goals of this research were (1) to determine the effect of treatment timing (spring versus fall) and application method (tree injection versus soil injection) on the spatial and temporal distribution of imidacloprid the primary insecticide used to treat A. tsugae and (2) to assess the impact of application method and timing of imidacloprid treatments on the arthropods associated with eastern hemlock. The results of this study showed that xylem fluid concentrations of imidacloprid were significantly (P < 0.05) higher for spring applications than for fall applications, and for trunk injections than soil injections in the first year post treatment. A diverse group of arthropods, making up 393 species, were collected by branch beating the lower crowns of eastern hemlock. No significant (P > 0.05) differences in arthropod abundance were found between imidacloprid treated and control trees and application methods. An extensive literature review revealed 484 native and exotic arthropods from three different taxonomic classes and 21 different orders associated with eastern hemlock in North America. A total of five arthropod species were eastern hemlock dependent, and are likely to experience local extirpation as a result of declining and dying eastern hemlock. In addition, an assessment of the impact of application method and timing of imidacloprid treatments on the spider communities were carried out because spiders are the primary arthropod predator present in the crown of eastern hemlock. No significant (P > 0.05) differences in spider abundance were found between imidacloprid treated and control trees and application methods. This study provides fundamental information to aid the conservation and management of eastern hemlock and biodivisity at risk due to extensive applications of imidacloprid. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the United States Forest Service, State and Private Forestry for allowing me to engage in graduate studies. I would like to express my gratitude to Daniel Twardus (retired USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Area), and Robert Lueckel who have served as my supervisors during most of this long journey. Dan’s suggestion to start my studies and hi support has made it possible for me to complete this project. I would also like to thank my graduate committee co-chair, Dr. Yong-Lak Park, for accepting me as a student and for his guidance and support over the course of this long process. I would also like to thank my committee co-chair Dr. Linda Butler, and the other members of my graduate committee Dr. William MacDonald, Dr. James Amrine, Dr Ray Hicks, and Bradley Onken for serving on my committee. I am grateful for being allowed to use the West Virginia Botanic Garden and the West Virginia University Forest for this study. I would like to thank Joseph Shupp, Chelsea Cook, Katie Radgowski, Hollie Fluharty, Whitney McCauley, Sam Forbeck, David Amrine, Will Harris, Whitney McCauley, Kandace Burton and the numerous other student assistants for their help with data collection and field work. This study is dedicated to my colleagues Thomas Elliott, Daniel Snider and George Seidel who passed away prior to the completion of this project. A special thanks to A.B. Billings (Department of Statistics, West Virginia University) for statistical advice, analysis and assistance with this project. I would also like to thank my mother Pauline, who gave me my perseverance, strength and resilience and to my father Francis for his ingenuity and who was the first to pass away. Lastly, I would like to express my deepest love to my wife, Kelly, and my children Hayley and Noah, who are my armor against the world and who helped me endure and balance, work, life and graduate studies. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Introduction Dissertation Organization 1 General Introduction 1 Objectives of Study 2 Literature Review 2 References Cited 11 Chapter 2 Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Imidacloprid within the Crown of Eastern Hemlock Abstract 27 Materials and Methods 30 Results 34 Discussion 35 Acknowledgements 37 References Cited 38 Chapter 3 Arthropod Community Composition in the Lower Crown of Eastern Hemlock in West Virginia Abstract 45 Materials and Methods 48 Results 49 Discussion 52 Acknowledgements 53 References Cited 54 Chapter 4 Arthropods at Risk Due to Eastern Hemlock Mortality Caused by the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (Hemiptera: Adelgidae) Abstract 66 Materials and Methods 69 Results 70 Discussion 70 Acknowledgements 72 References Cited 73 Chapter 5 Spiders in the Lower Crown of Eastern Hemlock in West Virginia Abstract 93 Materials and Methods 95 Results 97 Discussion 98 Acknowledgements 100 References Cited 100 Chapter 6 General Conclusion Conclusion 111 3 iv LIST OF TABLES Chapter 1 Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Imidacloprid and the Arthropod Fauna Associated with Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr. Table 1. Names and chemical structures of imidacloprid metabolites 22 (Lagalante and Greenbacker 2007) Chapter 2 Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Imidacloprid within the Crown of Eastern Hemlock Table 1. Mean imidacloprid concentration (ppb) in xylem fluid, 42 determined by ELISA from eastern hemlock Chapter 3 Arthropod Community Composition in the Lower Crown of Eastern Hemlock in West Virginia Table 1. Guild assignments based on identified species and reported host 60 range (Moran and Southward 1982, Stork 1987) Table 2. GLIMMIX model for arthropod counts 61 Table 3. Distribution and host range for the most common arthropod species 62 collected during this study Chapter 4 Arthropods at Risk Due to Eastern Hemlock Mortality Caused by the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (Hemiptera: Adelgidae) Table 1. Summary of online database searched for eastern hemlock and 81 arthropods Table 2. Terms and definitions used to describe the arthropod feeding guilds 82 of arthropods associated with eastern hemlock (modified from Mahan et al. 2004) Table 3. Taxonomic distribution of Arthropods species associated with 83 eastern hemlock in different risk groups resulting from the impact of hemlock woolly adelgid and elongate hemlock scale Table 4. Taxonomic distribution of phytophagous insect species associated 84 with eastern hemlock, conifers and hardwoods Table 5 Taxonomic distribution of phytophagous insect species associated 86 with different genera of conifers. Table 6 High and moderate risk rated arthropod species associated with 87 eastern hemlock. Chapter 5 Spiders in the Lower Crown of Eastern Hemlock in West Virginia Table 1. Spider families, total number collected (immature and adult), 106 number of species and foraging guild classification collected by branch beating the lower crown of eastern hemlock in West Virginia in 2005 and 2006 v Table 2. Table GLIMMIX model for spider counts 107 Table 3 Spider species collected and identified from eastern hemlock at at 108 the West Virginia Botanic Garden (WVBG) and West Virginia University Forest (WVUF) from May-to-October in 2005 and 2006. vi LIST OF FIGURES Chapter 1 Introduction