Abstract
Simple SummaryLaurel wilt is a devastating exotic fungal disease that threatens avocado and related members of the laurel family in North America. This disease has killed over 300 million redbay trees and has caused cascading ecological impacts across the landscape. Management strategies, especially in natural forests, are limited. The ambrosia beetles that vector this disease respond strongly to odors produced by the trees, and our research indicates that it is possible to repel the beetles away from trees in a forest setting with the use of verbenone. Other compounds have been identified that can be used to trap the beetles. If used together, these strategies can be used to develop a single “push-pull” system to manage this disease in natural systems where other management strategies are not feasible.This review highlights current advances in the management of the redbay ambrosia beetle, Xyleborus glabratus, a primary vector of the pathogenic fungus, Raffaelea lauricola, that causes laurel wilt. Laurel wilt has a detrimental effect on forest ecosystems of southeastern USA, with hundreds of millions of Lauraceae deaths. Currently, preventive measures mostly focus on infected-tree removal to potentially reduce local beetle populations and/or use of preventative fungicide applications in urban trees. Use of semiochemicals may offer an opportunity for the management of X. glabratus. Research on attractants has led to the development of α-copaene lures that are now the accepted standards for X. glabratus sampling. Research conducted on repellents first included methyl salicylate and verbenone and attained significant reduction in the number of X. glabratus captured on redbay and swamp bay trees treated with verbenone. However, the death rate of trees protected with verbenone, while lower compared to untreated trees, is still high. This work underscores the necessity of developing new control methods, including the integration of repellents and attractants into a single push-pull system.
Highlights
The invasive redbay ambrosia beetle, Xyleborus glabratus Eichhoff (Coleoptera: Scolytinae)(Figure 1) and its symbiont, the fungal pathogen Raffaelea lauricola Harrington & Fraedrich was first detected in Georgia in 2002
The disastrous impact of laurel wilt has important implications for the ecosystem, rates increase with tree size with 100% mortality of trees above 12 cm diameter at breast height in including those on wildlife that rely on Lauraceae as a food source
States is probably due to an “evolutionary mismatch” as defined by Hulcr et al [46]. An illustration of this mismatch is that the leaf volatiles play a role in the initial attraction of X. glabratus on redbay and swamp bay, even though X. glabratus is not capable to develop in healthy trees [38]
Summary
The invasive redbay ambrosia beetle, Xyleborus glabratus Eichhoff (Coleoptera: Scolytinae). States is probably due to an “evolutionary mismatch” as defined by Hulcr et al [46] An illustration of this mismatch is that the leaf volatiles play a role in the initial attraction of X. glabratus on redbay and swamp bay, even though X. glabratus is not capable to develop in healthy trees [38]. X. glabratus is attracted to leaf volatiles of redbay and swamp bay but not by leaf volatiles of non-hosts, and this attraction occurs even if the tree is undamaged This finding is not peculiar, as other wood borers, including bark and ambrosia beetles, may be attracted to leaf volatiles from their host [47,48]. Found that X. glabratus does produce more abundant brood in bolts colonized with R. lauricola than from healthy trees and hypothesized that physical properties in diseased sapwood could be more conducive to brood productions
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