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Ecology and Management of Invasive Species and Forest Ecosystems

We provide knowledge and methods for protecting and sustaining healthy forests affected by invading species and other disturbances.
We seek to:

• Understand invasion biology and provide the biological basis for risk assessments.

• Improve detection and identification of invading species.

• Assess social, economic, and ecological effects of biological invasions.

• Provide and evaluate integrated management tools and strategies to deal with invasive species.

• Develop restoration/rehabilitation options for invaded forest ecosystems.

• Develop genetic, silvicultural, and forest management tools to sustain the productivity of our forests and wild lands.

More Information

This site is under development as the Forest Service brings together the Northeastern and North Central Research Stations to form the Northern Research Station, serving the Northeast and Midwest. The links below will take you to pages of the old sites for the Role of Forest Insect Biology and Biocontrol in Maintaining Forest Health; Providing New Information on the Biology, Ecology, and Management of Exotic Invasive Forest Insects; Disturbance Ecology and Management of Oak-Dominated Forests; and Integration of Forest Operations Into Eastern Hardwood Intermediate Cuttings and Structural Retention units that combined to form the Ecology and Management of Invasive Species and Forest Ecosystems research work unit. Check back often as we expand our site to reflect our combined commitment to supporting the natural resources and people of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States.

Research Topics

Our research scientists and support personnel focus on non-native invasive species, such as insects, diseases, and plants affecting forests and trees.  We work to develop basic understanding of invasion biology, spread, population dynamics, ecological effects, and economic impacts of problematic non-native invasive species in the Northeast and Midwest.  This information is then used to develop predictive models and treatments for integrated management. Such treatments include biocontrol (including natural enemies), mating disruption, pesticides, silviculture, and host resistance. The development of decision-support models, management tools, and landscape-scale models for the Gypsy Moth Slow-the-Spread Program is an important component of the unit’s applied research and development approach.

Similar approaches for hemlock woolly adelgid and emerald ash borer are in earlier stages of development.  Evaluations of hazards, risk, and social, ecological, and economic effects of other non-native invasive species are used by managers for risk assessment.  Unit scientists are also experts on the biology of the Asian longhorned beetle. Long-term studies of silvicultural practices for reducing gypsy moth effects, new research on silvicultural treatments for hemlock woolly adelgid, beech bark disease, and emerald ash borer, and work on restoration treatments of American chestnut and butternut all form the applied research effort in restoration of forests adversely affected by invasive species.  We also develop biologically and economically effective silvicultural treatments for managing, rehabilitating, and regenerating oak forests as part of NRS’s sustaining forests theme.