Abstract
Oak decline is a widely distributed disease that results from an interacting set of factors in the Central Hardwood Region. Episodes of decline have been reported since before the turn of the twentieth century and from every state in the region. It is a stress-mediated disease that results from the interactions of physiologically mature trees, abiotic and biotic stressors that alter carbohydrate physiology, and opportunistic fungal pathogens and inner bark-feeding insects. Symptoms include reduced radial growth and slow, progressive crown dieback. Decline occurs over several years or decades, ending in death of vulnerable trees. Patterns of oak decline vary from a few trees in stands with diverse species composition and age structure, to areas covering several thousand ha in landscapes with more uniform composition of susceptible, physiologically mature red oak group species. Prolonged periods of drought that occur in combination with repeated spring defoliations by leaf-feeding insects exacerbate decline. Past disturbances have shaped current forest species composition and age structure, favoring physiologically mature stands with a large oak component, and are thus inextricably linked to oak decline vulnerability. Noteworthy examples are the functional extirpation of the American chestnut by the non-indigenous chestnut blight pathogen, combined with changing disturbance patterns, including fire suppression and reduced harvesting, during the early twentieth century. Data from extensive regional surveys have been used to develop models predicting the probability and impacts of oak decline events as part of the Forest Vegetation Simulator
Keywords
Crown dieback,
Oak mortality,
Predisposing factors,
Oak decline survey,
Oak decline event monitor
Citation
Oak, Steven W; Spetich, Martin A.; Morin, Randall S. 2015. Oak decline in central hardwood forests: frequency, spatial extent, and scale. Pages 49-71. In: Greenberg, Cathryn H.; Collins, Beverly S.(eds.). Natural disturbances and historic range of variation: Type, frequency, severity, and post-disturbance structure in central hardwood forests USA. Managing Forest Ecosystems, 2015, Vol. 32. 400pp.
