Infestation Levels of Dogwood Borer (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) Larvae on Dogwood Trees in Selected Habitats in Tennessee
Rogers LE and Grant JF. 1990. Infestation Levels of Dogwood Borer (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) Larvae on Dogwood Trees in Selected Habitats in Tennessee. Journal of Entomological Science. 25(3):481-485
Infestation levels of Synanthedon scitula on flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) in commercial nursery, urban and forest habitats in eastern and middle Tennessee were measured during 1987 and 1988. The highest average infestation level (ca. 60%) was found in the urban habitat, where mechanical injury, e.g. damage caused by lawn mowers or string trimmers, may have provided oviposition or larval entry sites. Larvae were found in all nursery blocks examined, with ca. 7% of the trees infested/block. Infested trees are not marketable; thus, economic losses averaged ca. $1800/block (mean of 1770 trees/block) of dogwoods. Infestation levels were lowest (ca. 1%) in the forest habitat, where dogwoods grow as a natural component of the forest understorey.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Rogers, Laura; Grant, Jerome
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- clearwing moths, Cornus florida, Dogwood, Dogwood borer, GRSM-00090, GRSM-01879, Infestation, Insecta, Lepidoptera, Sesiidae, Synanthedon
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Terrestrial Invertebrates