Biotic Factors Affecting Ecosystem Services in Urban and Peri-Urban Forests in Italy: The Role of Introduced and Impending Pathogens and Pests

Abstract

Abstract:The present-day phytosanitary disasters caused by biological invasions are afflicting urban and peri-urban forest stands worldwide, as well as the varied services they normally provide. In Europe, we are witnessing an alarming situation due to an increasing introduction of infectious diseases and pests. The authors present an up-to-date list of alien microbial pathogens and insect pests affecting urban greening that have been accidentally imported in Italy or that are likely to be introduced. Information about the biology, epidemiology, ethology, and control of these invasive organisms is provided. For each species, the current geographical distribution, including newly-colonized areas, is also given, as well as the chronological progression of its occurrence. Particular detail is used for describing symptoms-the key diagnostic elements for appropriate and timely phytosanitary management. This paper will benefit urban forest management, which is a crucial factor in maintaining the social and ecological viability of urban green spaces, as well as ecosystem services. The importance of engaging citizens in community-based monitoring of urban greenspaces for tracking the location, abundance, and pathways of invasive pathogens and pests will also be touched upon.

Biological Flora of the British Isles: Crataegus monogyna

“…Introduced from the United States to Europe (southern England) in 1957 (Crosse et al, 1958), this disease spread across the continent (France 1978, Switzerland 1989, Germany 1990, Yugoslavia 1990. It attacks woody Rosaceae and causes the withering and necrosis of shoots, flowers, leaves and fruit, as well as cankers on the branches (Moricca et al, 2018). Because of its sometimes epidemic extent, fire blight is dreaded among owners of orchards and is notifiable in several countries, for example, in the United Kingdom since November 1987(The Plant Health (Great Britain) Order 1987 and in Germany since June 1988 (Verordnung zur Bekämpfung der Feuerbrandkrankheit, 1985).…”

Epidemiological Investigations Shed Light on the Ecological Role of the Endophyte Phomopsis quercina in Mediterranean Oak Forests

“…Proper forest management practices can, to a certain extent, help cope with infections caused by P. quercina (Moricca et al 2018). When P. quercina attacks are only slight, the amount of inoculum in the forest should be reduced by felling infected trees and lopping off branches that have started to wither, or branches with cankers on one or two-year-old twigs.…”

Alien Invasive Pathogens and Pests Harming Trees, Forests, and Plantations: Pathways, Global Consequences and Management

“…The current climate trend towards global warming acts directly on IAPPs by creating favourable conditions for their establishment in formerly unsuitable areas [11]. In addition, higher temperatures enhance the fitness of the more thermophilic IAPPs, favouring their reproductive and dispersive biology; furthermore, milder climates increase the number of yearly reproductive cycles and of individuals surviving the winter season [12]. Changes in climate additionally bolster IAPPs indirectly by making plants more susceptible, since adverse climatic factors, such as extended drought and extreme weather events (e.g., rainstorms, windstorms, hail, and severe flooding), impact plant health, reducing plant growth and vigour, altering phenology, impairing physiological processes, and creating wounds that favour IAPP attacks [13,14].…”

“…Changes in climate additionally bolster IAPPs indirectly by making plants more susceptible, since adverse climatic factors, such as extended drought and extreme weather events (e.g., rainstorms, windstorms, hail, and severe flooding), impact plant health, reducing plant growth and vigour, altering phenology, impairing physiological processes, and creating wounds that favour IAPP attacks [13,14]. Some of the major impacts of forest IAPPs are: reduction of primary production; alterations of evolutionary processes, both in host populations and in organisms taxonomically related to the invaders; changes in ecological relationships within tree communities (for example, alteration of symbiotic relationships, either mutualistic or antagonistic, between the tree species and their animal or microbial symbionts); decrease or loss of ecosystem services (water filtration and supply, climate mitigation, erosion prevention, nutrient cycling, carbon storage, and habitat provision); and demise of native species (extinction) [12,15].…”