The snow has melted, the first spring rains have passed, leaves are appearing on the trees, and warm April weather prevails… The 2018 vegetation season has begun!
Along with the pleasant moments of nature awakening after winter, harmful insects are also becoming active.
The first to emerge were pine sawflies, specifically the red-headed sawfly Acantholyda erythrocephala L.. The next will be the starry sawfly Lyda nemoralis Thoms., whose imagos will start flying in early May.
Pine sawflies can significantly expand the affected area due to both active and passive dispersal of their imagos.
In light of the above, we recommend that forest protection authorities increase monitoring of the population development of these harmful insect species in natural conditions. Conduct forest pathological surveys of pine plantations, paying special attention to Scots pine stands aged 20-30 years.
The key to preserving pine cultures is the timely detection of mass outbreaks of pine sawflies and the implementation of appropriate forest protection measures.