Date of Award

12-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Forest Resources (MFR)

Department

Forestry and Environmental Conservation

Committee Chair/Advisor

David R. Coyle

Committee Member

R. Talbot Trotter III

Committee Member

Jessica A. Hartshorn

Committee Member

Michael S. Caterino

Abstract

A new population of the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis Motschulsky, hereafter ALB), an invasive species in the United States since 1996, was discovered in Charleston County, South Carolina in 2020. This population is the furthest south ALB has been found in North America and provides an opportunity to examine the phenology of this beetle in a novel climate. I collected 1009 eggs, larvae, pupae, and adult beetles from the federal quarantine zone in South Carolina and used larval head capsule widths to determine the rate of development and voltinism of ALB in South Carolina’s coastal climate. With this method I was able to determine that ALB in South Carolina appears to have a synchronous univoltine life cycle, in contrast to populations in the northern U.S. that typically develop in 1-3 years. Using this field data, I was also able to validate the accuracy of an ALB phenology model that had not previously been tested in a subtropical climate, and use the model to predict development rates for nine locations of varying latitudes around the U.S. The model predicted that several locations along the southern edge of the U.S. will have similar or even faster development than South Carolina, which could be concerning for management programs tasked with the eradication of ALB in the South, as well as northern programs that may see an increase in development rate as climate change increases temperatures.

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