Relative impacts of gypsy moth outbreaks and insecticide treatments on forest resources and ecosystem: An experimental approach

Gypsy moth outbreaks cause severe defoliation in Holarctic forests, both in North America where it is invasive, and in its native range in Eurasia. Severe defoliation can hamper timber production and impact ecological communities and processes. Aerial insecticide applications are regularly performed in outbreak areas to mitigate economic losses. These operations can be financially costly and harmful to non-target species and may disrupt species interaction networks. However, replicated studies of the relative impacts of gypsy moth outbreaks and insecticide application on forest growth and animal communities are rare and have yet to be carried out in the species' indigenous range.

Here, we review the pathways in which gypsy moth outbreaks and the chemical control of these outbreaks affect forest ecosystems. We then present an experimental design established in South Central Germany in early 2019, aiming to study the ecological and economic consequences of gypsy moth eruptions and ins...