The Allegheny Hemlock Conservation Partnership, Allegheny Forest Health Collaborative and Allegheny Outfitters will host programs February 13 and 15 focusing on the invasive pest known as the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in Warren County.

Background

Adelges tsugae, better known as Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (ah-del-jid) or HWA, is an invasive insect that arrived in the United States from southern Japan in the early 1950’s.

HWA is a threat to Eastern Hemlock trees because they are not adapted to its presence, and those that become a host to HWA may succumb to the infestation within as little as 4 to 5 years.

Since its arrival, HWA has left expansive hemlock stands dead in its wake throughout the east, diminishing the health of the forests where they once stood tall and leaving humans scratching their heads.

HWA has arrived in the forests of northwestern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York, and concerned groups are organizing to focus their attention on the health of our forests with the goal of sustaining hope for the hemlocks.

Several years ago, the USDA Forest Service and Nature Conservancy-PA brought a group of individuals together, representing multiple land ownerships across many political boundaries, to form the High Allegheny Hemlock Conservation Partnership.

This group worked to identify and prioritize the hemlock forests within the High Allegheny Plateau and set out to gather information regarding the presence of HWA across this large landscape.

Through the Partnership, volunteers were recruited to adopt sites to survey annually for the presence of HWA. Over the past few years, this dangerous pest has been found within multiple sites, but infestations have been treated in an effort to slow its spread.

Today, partners in the HAHCP as well as the Allegheny Forest Health Collaborative (AFHC) are looking ahead and considering how HWA as well as other pests, diseases and stressors may impact the health of our forests in this next decade and beyond.

In an effort to glean more information regarding the presence and absence of HWA across the landscape, these groups are seeking the aid of additional volunteers with an interest in monitoring important hemlock habitats for this invasive bug.

Feb. 13, 15 Programs

On February 13, these collaborative groups will be leading a training session hosted by Allegheny Outfitters in Warren from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.

In addition, Saturday February 15 staff from the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, one of the project partners, will be joining Allegheny Outfitters on their hike at the Morrison Trail and will highlight to attendees how to survey for HWA and report findings.

The group will be meeting at the trailhead on Route 59 at 10:30 a.m. These programs will be free and all are welcome to attend!

For more information, visit the Allegheny Outfitters Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Training Session webpage or send an email to: hwa@rtpi.org.

More information on this invasive species is available on DCNR’s Hemlock Woolly Adelgid webpage including DCNR’s Eastern Hemlock Conservation Plan.

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[Posted: February 8, 2020]

2/10/2020