Target Tailored Forest Damage Inventory (TFDI) - Damage by bark beetle in Västernorrland 2011

Inventories of forest damage are carried out within the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) Forests programme. An annual monitoring of the most important sources of forest damage is carried out by the Swedish National Forest inventory (NFI). Although the Swedish NFI is an objective and uniform inventory of forest damage in Swedish forests at national and regional scales, less common or less widespread occurrences of forests pests and pathogens are difficult to survey solely through large-scale monitoring programmes. There is a need for complementary inventories to facilitate timely delivery of relevant information. Thus Target-tailored forest damage inventories (TFDI) aiming at providing data for operational decisions making at local level, and linked to specific damage events were introduced. TFDI’s are developed to give rapid response to requested information of specific damage outbreaks. The TFDI’s are carried out in limited and concentrated samples, with flexible but robust methods and design. The data collected in the TFDI shall also be of such quality that it can be useful in research. During 2011 TFDI carried out a sample inventory of the volume Norway spruce (Picea abies) damage by bark beetles, Four-eyed spruce bark beetle (Polygrapus poligraphus) and/or European spruce bark beetle (Ips typographus) in older spruce forest in the county of Västernorrland. The purpose of the inventory was to estimate the volume Norway spruce damage by the given bark beetles, but also to highlight geographical distribution and the appearance of the damage in different forest sites. The inventory was stratified by an objective sample of the National Forest Inventory al permanent sample plots in the county of Västernorrland. Included plots within the sample was older thinning forest and final felling mature forest consisting of at least 7/10 spruce and a lesser proportion of forest with lesser share of spruce or younger thinning forest. The radii of sample plots use for the damage inventory was 25 m. Diameter at breast height was measured on damage trees. Furthermore specie of bark beetle and age of damage was recorded. In total 97 plots and 236 trees was measured. Some assessed and used variables At sample plot level Plot area measured Occurrence of new attack of Four eyed spruce bark beetle Occurrence of new attack of European spruce bark beetle Occurrence of older damage caused by the bark beetles The proportion of spruce damage by bark beetles sample plot radii 10 m The proportion of spruce damage by bark beetles sample plot radii 25 m The proportion of spruce at the sample plot At tree level Is the tree dead or alive? Diameter at breast height Which specie of bark beetle has attacked the tree? Which season did the damage occur? Distance to tree edge Tree height Tree volume See the document "Data_description" for more detailed information. As additional documentation, field instructions for the inventories are also provided.