Abstract
Firewood can act as a long-distance dispersal vector for wood-infesting insects both within and among countries. Recently, we detected the alien carpenter ant Camponotus mus in firewood transported from central Argentina to Patagonia. This species generates significant economic losses in its native range and has invader potential. Moreover, global warming and the increasing anthropogenic disturbance in Patagonian ecosystems make them highly susceptible to insect invasions. This is especially alarming considering the current lack of sanitary controls of incoming goods into the region. To prevent insect introductions via firewood, it is crucial to implement a joint effort among the scientific community, control organisms, government and end user.https://doi.org/10.25260/EA.17.27.2.0.478
Highlights
Geographical barriers such as oceans and mountain ranges limited species dispersal, but these barriers have been overcome by human activities (Liebhold et al 1995)
There is a positive relationship between the relative abundance of invasive species in different countries and the volume of trade (Vila and Pujadas 2001; Westphal et al 2008)
We provide some future directions with the aim of preventing the introduction of these and other insects transported in firewood to Patagonia which can be applied to potential introductions worldwide
Summary
Geographical barriers such as oceans and mountain ranges limited species dispersal, but these barriers have been overcome by human activities (Liebhold et al 1995). Human movements and trade facilitate the mid and long-distance dispersal of many species (e.g., Suárez et al 2001; von der Lippe and Kowarik 2007), which allows the first and last stages underlying biological invasions: arrival (transport of individuals to new areas outside their native range) and spread (expansion of invading species’ geographical range in invaded areas) (Shigesada and Kawasaki 1997). The Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis Motschulsky, Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire, Coleoptera: Buprestidae) are serious economic and ecological threats to North American and Canadian forests Both beetle species tend to travel fewer than two kilometers on their own, but have infested new areas by humanassisted transportation with firewood and nursery stock as a vector (Poland et al 1998; Crocker et al 2007; Kovacs et al 2010). We provide some future directions with the aim of preventing the introduction of these and other insects transported in firewood to Patagonia which can be applied to potential introductions worldwide
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