With increasing spruce beetle-caused mortality in the Central Interior there is a need to increase knowledge of the beetle and ensure that ground detection crews are proficient in survey methods.Target Audience:
Primarily forest consulting personnel who intend to bid on and conduct ground detection survey contracts and government and licensee personnel engaged in planning, administering survey contracts or checking the field work of others.
Main Course Objectives:
Attendees will be able to: 1) accurately identify spruce beetle and the year of attack, 2) properly classify attacked trees, 3) record data on the Spruce Beetle Probe Card (FS 1111) and Compass and Traverse Sheet (FS 375), and 4) transpose data to the Spruce Beetle Summary Sheet.
Participant Requirements:
Attendees require note paper, normal field gear, a 3-ringed survey field book, a hatchet or light axe, and a calculator for the exam. Participants should know to use GPS, a compass, forest cover maps, and aerial photographs/Google Earth images as these skills will not be taught or reviewed. Potential attendees with less than grade 10 education may have difficulty passing the optional exam.
Course Content:
• Beetle biology, life cycle, and signs/symptoms of attack
• Causes of outbreaks and duration
• Stand susceptibility and risk rating
• Aerial and ground detection methods
• Walkthroughs, probes, hybrid methods and data summarization
• Control tactics
