156 prevalence, economic cost, and pesticide use (Kiel- baso and Kennedy 1983; Neely et al. 1984; Nielsen et al. 1985; Wu et al. 1991). However, none have been conducted in the past 30 years, during which time new exotic pests have arrived, preference for tree spe- cies has changed, and atmospheric temperature has increased. For example, the USDA updated the Plant Hardiness zones to reflect higher average winter tem- peratures across the U.S.A. (USDA 2012). Thus, the geographic range within which some tree species may be suitable has changed along with the distribu- tion of some pests. Review of Previous Pest and IPM Assessments One of the first assessments of pest status on urban trees is from Kielbaso and Kennedy (1983). In 1980, they surveyed 1534 municipal tree care profession- als, then ranked the pests by region in the Northeast, North Central, South, West, and Nationally. In 1991, Wu et al. (1991) reported a comparison between the 1980 survey and a new, similar survey in 1986 of 1062 municipalities. Respondents were asked to list the tree pests they considered most important. Rank- ings varied by region as in the previous assessment by Kielbaso and Kennedy (1983). In the South, bor- ers, bagworms, and aphids were the top three pests, followed by webworms and scales. Pine bark beetle is reported on the Southern list, which was not reported in other regions. Nielsen et al. (1985) conducted a survey of 44 communities in the North Central region about the common street tree species and pest problems. These surveys provide the relative importance of pests in each region, but their interpretation is limited by two factors. Respondents were free to list taxa based on their experience or expertise rather than selecting from a list of choices. Respondents listed 81 arthropod taxa, an indication of the diversity of tree pests, but the taxonomic specificity varied, and not all taxa were reported to species (Wu et al. 1991). For example, in Wu et al. (1991), many lepidopterans are listed, some of which are species (e.g., gypsy moth), while others are colloquial designations (e.g., webworms, tent cater- pillars) in addition to just “caterpillar.” Lepidopteran larvae are large, cause noticeable damage and frass, and are easy to identify, so a list of “top ten” pests may be populated with several types of caterpillar. However, cryptic taxa show up in the surveys as just ©2019 International Society of Arboriculture Frank: Survey of Street Tree Pests “scales” or “borers” and may be ranked lower as a result. In addition, previous surveys did not ask respondents to match important pests to the tree taxa on which they occurred. Thus, rankings are driven in part by particularly abundant or pest-prone tree spe- cies. Although this provides an important picture of what managers were dealing with on a city-wide basis, it does not help identify which tree taxa are most pest-prone and which taxa with fewer pests may be alternatives. METHODS Street tree genera and pests differ throughout the country (Wu et al. 1991). A particularly important factor affecting tree selection and pest abundance is climate, which varies with latitude. Therefore, this survey focused on arthropod pests of street trees in the South- ern U.S.A., since the goal was to identify current key pests in one region and compare to past assessments, rather than compare among regions. The region included Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia, fol- lowing the definition of the “Southern Region” used by the USDA Southern IPM Center. The survey was distributed via national email list- servs that include university research and extension faculty and professionals involved in the tree care industry, such as those who work for municipalities, tree care companies, industry organizations, and agrochemical companies. The initial request for par- ticipation was sent on March 3, 2017 and described the focus and goals of the survey. Those who were willing to participate then received the survey, along with specific individuals who were invited to increase participation and industry representation. Twelve tree genera were included in the survey that are commonly planted as street trees in the South- eastern U.S.A.: Acer, Fraxinus, Lagerstroemia, Liq- uidambar, Liriodendron, Pinus, Platanus, Prunus, Pyrus, Quercus, Ulmus, and Zelkova. These genera were selected because they were represented by the most individual trees listed in tree inventories from five Southeastern cities: Atlanta, GA; Savannah, GA; Charleston, SC; Charlotte, NC; and Raleigh, NC (Just et al. 2018). Previous pest assessment surveys have used many different taxonomic groups and ranking systems. This survey focused on broad pest categories but also
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