The Effect of Periodical Cicadas on Growth of Five Tree Species in Midwestern Deciduous Forests

Abstract

Abstract Periodical cicada emergences in the eastern United States are one of the largest biomass fluctuations in the world, providing a unique opportunity to study if a root parasite can affect broad-scale patterns of forest growth and succession. We used dendrochronology to examine the direct effect of Brood X (17 y cicada) and Brood XXIII (13 y cicada) periodical cicadas on 89 individual trees from five species (Acer saccharum, Fraxinus americana, Quercus palustris, Q. velutina and Sassafras albidum) in Indiana. Standard dendrochronological techniques were used to date the tree-ring samples and our chronologies ranged from 63–98 y in age, spanning from four to eight cicada emergences. We removed the main climate variable from each species chronology by conducting a regression analysis and using the residuals for the remainder of the analysis. Significant climate models were developed for all five species. Acer saccharum growth correlated highest with Jun. temperature (r = −0.392), Fraxinus americana ...