On October 2nd & 3rd, scientists from the ONF, INRA and DSF will discuss the current knowledge on the biology and ecology of cockchafers to explore novel options to limit the insect outbreaks and their detrimental impact on forest regenerations.
The common and forest Cockchafer are two beetle species well known for the damages they can inflict to forest ecosystems. Whereas the adults may occasion spectacular defoliations to adult trees, the larvae also feed on the roots of young trees causing severe mortality in forest regenerations, further impacting the whole forest management process. Eastern European countries had been facing recurrent infestations since the 1960’s; in France, cockchafer populations seem to have turned from endemic to epidemic in the last 10 years, with dramatic damages reported in young forest stands of Picardie and Northern Alsace. In Germany, chemical treatments proved to be efficient in reducing populations and subsequent damages but their use is now forbidden. A wide diversity of alternatives had been investigated in Europe, mainly based on biological control methods. To date, these studies did not produce results that could be developed and ultimately applied in everyday forest management.
Forest managers now question the opportunity of modifying forest ecosystem parameters that are critical for the different phases of the cockchafer lifecycle. Such actions are likely to produce short-term efficient methods with limited environmental impacts. This project is based on a benchmarking approach of the acquired scientific knowledge of cockchafer biology and of thetechnical experiences accumulated in the European countries that have been subjected to outbreaks in the last decades. We aim at investigating whether changes in silvicultural management are able to limit cockchafer population dynamics.
Our first objective is to establish a state-of-the-art review of the knowledge concerning the environmental factors which determine cockchafer outbreaks. Then, our second objective is to propose a protocol to describe stand cover structure and ground vegetation characteristics which determine cockchafer larval density. These two objectives will initiate national and international networking on the research for solutions to cockchafer damages to forests.
Finally, the proposed project will provide a framework of hypothesis for the research of ecological solutions to prevent cockchafer outbreaks. This innovative project is likely to initiate a technical and scientific strategy for the management crisis caused by cockchafer outbreaks.
