Diorhabda Impact on Tamarix Growth and Dieback
Kim Fike1, Keara Bixby2*, Ara Winter3, Kim Eichhorst4
1Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Kim.fike@bosqueschool.org
2Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Keara.bixby@bosqueschool.org
3Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Ara.winter@bosqueschool.org
4Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Kimde@unm.edu
Saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) – one of the most successful invasive plants in the riparian areas of the Southwest – is difficult to control and remove. The tamarisk leaf beetle (Diorhabda spp., TLB) was introduced as a method of biological control beginning in 2001. Starting in 2013, the Bosque Ecosystem Monitoring Program (BEMP) began to monitor the beetle’s distribution and abundance as it began to disperse into New Mexico. BEMP has collected TLB at 16 - 27 sites spanning 270 miles of the Middle Rio Grande riparian forest locally known as the “bosque”.
BEMP has a unique role as a long-term citizen science research organization, with vegetation and leaf litter data going back to 1997. Using these long-term data, we have analyzed the vegetative changes due to the introduction of the beetle. Our data show shifts in timing of leaf fall, and an increased percentage of dead branches for saltcedar. This has implications for understanding TLB impact on the senescing bosque ecosystem as well as the potential for increasing fuel loads in the bosque.