- Author: Michael I Jones
From an entomologist's perspective, 2023 couldn't have been a more interesting year for oak pests!
The first sign of great and awesome things to come was in the spring when it became clear many oaks were going to produce abundant acorns. I wouldn't call it a mast year, since there weren't entire populations of oaks producing acorns. But, looking at individual trees or sites, there were trees (coast live oak, valley oak, blue oak, Oregon white oak, and scrub oak) throughout Sonoma and Mendocino Counties loaded with acorns. And when you get lots of acorns, you can expect acorn pests!
The first evidence that something was going on with acorns started when sticky drops started to appear under the canopy of coast live oaks...
- Author: Michael I Jones
I have been monitoring conifer mortality in Mendocino, Lake, Napa, and Sonoma Counties for the past year. Based on my observations and review of aerial detection surveys conducted by CAL FIRE Forest Health Specialists, the region is currently experiencing significant conifer mortality due to an outbreak of several native bark beetle species. Primary conifers impacted (and associated bark beetles) include ponderosa pine (western pine beetle), Douglas-fir (flatheaded fir borer and Douglas-fir engraver), Grey pine and knobcone pine (Ips species).
These outbreaks likely originated in areas...
