Dragos Cocos

Establishment and spread of invasive forest insects

The number of non-native forest insects that establish in new regions increases strongly as a result of global trade. This results in large negative effects on native biodiversity and ecosystem services.

This research project is aimed at studying which factors are most important for establishment and spread of non-native forest insects. Knowledge about this will contribute to more efficient methods for early detection and control of invasive species.

Study systems

Small spruce bark beetle (Ips amitinus)

Larch bark beetle (Ips cembrae)

Larch longhorn beetle (Tetropium gabrielli)

Maartje Klapwijk 

Martin Schroeder

Christer Björkman

Økland, B., Flø, D., Schroeder, M., Zach, P., Cocos, D., Martikainen, P., Siitonen, J.,
Mandelshtam, M.Y., Musolin, D. L., Neuvonen, S., Vakula, J., Nikolov, C.,
Lindelöw, Å. and Voolma, K. (2019). Range expansion of the small spruce bark beetle Ips amitinus: a newcomer in northern Europe. Agricultural and Forest Entomology, DOI: 10.1111/afe.12331

Schroeder, M.L. and Cocos. D. (2017). Performance of the tree-killing bark beetles Ips typographus and Pityogenes chalcographus in non-indigenous lodgepole pineand their historical host Norway spruce. Agricultural and Forest Entomology. 20 (3). 347-357.

Cocos, D., Etxebeste, I., Schroeder, M.L., (2017). An efficient detection method for the red-listed beetle Acanthocinus griseus based on attractant-baited traps. Insect Conservation and Diversity. 10. 294-301.

Pajares, J.A., Alvarez, G., Hall, D.R., Ibarra, N., Hoch, G., Halbig, P., Cocos, D., Johansson, H. Schroeder, M. (2016). Attractants for management of the pine sawyer beetle Monochamus sutor, a potential vector of Bursaphelenchus xylophilus. Journal of Applied Entomology 141: 97-111.