The Influence of Caterpillars and Climate on Tree Growth - How caterpillar abundance, with the resulting defoliation, and changes in climatic conditions affect the seasonal growth of Quercus sp..

Budin, Bernhard (2021) The Influence of Caterpillars and Climate on Tree Growth - How caterpillar abundance, with the resulting defoliation, and changes in climatic conditions affect the seasonal growth of Quercus sp.. Master's Research Project 2, Ecology and Evolution.

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Abstract

Some species of forest caterpillars have been observed to exhibit cyclical outbreaks and defoliate entire forests during the peaks of outbreaks. The defoliation of Quercus spp. and drought conditions throughout the year have a negative impact on trees development, which becomes an important factor for oak survival as climate change advances. While this topic has been under investigation there are still areas and factors that need attention. In this study core samples from 12 individual Quercus robur from the Dwingelderveld, in Drenthe, the Netherlands, have been taken and the ring width variation between 2007 and 2019 been analysed. For each individual tree, annual caterpillar peak abundance was known and we investigated how much of the variance is explained by either caterpillar biomass or drought. It was found that caterpillar biomass negatively affects the growth of a tree and to a lesser extend drought also has a negative impact.

Item Type:	Thesis (Master's Research Project 2)
Supervisor name:	Both, C. and Elzenga, J.T.M.
Degree programme:	Ecology and Evolution
Thesis type:	Master's Research Project 2
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	07 Apr 2021 08:55
Last Modified:	07 Apr 2021 08:55
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/24192

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