MODIS Time Series Reveal New Maximum Records of Defoliated Area by Ormiscodes amphimone in Deciduous Nothofagus Forests, Southern Chile

Abstract

Outbreaks of the Ormiscodes amphimone moth are among the largest biotic disturbances in South America, defoliating vast areas of native Nothofagus pumilio forests in the Chilean and Argentinian Patagonia in the last decade. Using MODIS 16-day composites of the enhanced vegetation index and the new functions of the latest release of the “npphen” R-package, we identified new maximum records of continuously defoliated area in the Aysén region (Chilean Patagonia). This approach allowed us to detect 55,193 ha and 62,344 ha of extremely defoliated N. pumilio forest in 2019 and 2022, respectively, in an area locally known as “Mallín Grande”. Extreme defoliation was accounted for by means of negative EVI anomalies with values falling among 5% of the lowest EVI records of the reference period (2000–2010). These new 2019 and 2022 outbreaks in Mallín Grande were the largest reported insect outbreaks in South American Patagonia in this century.