ALBERT

Description: We examined the impacts of a severe, regional drought (2001–2002) on trembling aspen ( Populus tremuloides Michx.) forests in the western Canadian interior. A total of 150 plots were established in 25 study areas as part of a regional-scale study (CIPHA). Aspen health and mortality were assessed annually during 2000–2005, and changes in stem biomass were estimated using tree-ring analysis and plot-based measurements. Net mean increment in living biomass for all plots was 2.2 t·ha–1·year–1 during 2000–2002 but subsequently decreased to near zero. This collapse was driven by a more than two-fold increase in stem mortality and a 30% decrease in regional stem growth during and following the drought. The analysis showed that spatial variation in aspen productivity and biomass across the region was positively related to multiyear mean values of a climate moisture index and mineral soil silt content but was negatively related to levels of insect defoliation and wood-boring insects. In contrast, mortality and dieback was best correlated with minimum annual climate moisture index, which provided a measure of short-term drought severity. The results support previous studies showing that aspen forests are moisture limited in this region, which poses concerns for the future under a changing climate.

Description: While lodgepole pine dwarf mistletoe, Arceuthobium americanum Nutt. ex Engelm., is one of the most damaging pests of jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) in western Canada, no studies have examined the life cycle of this parasite in this pathosystem. Twenty-five jack pine trees in a plantation in Edmonton, Alberta, were inoculated with seeds of A. americanum in the fall of 1998 and 1999; these inoculants were monitored until the dwarf mistletoe plants that arose completed their life cycle. Ninety-two percent of inoculated seeds overwintered on their host. Seventy percent of these seeds germinated, mostly in May. Of these germinants, 69% developed holdfasts. Sixty-eight percent of germinants that developed holdfasts infected their host and produced shoots, primarily between July and August in the second season after inoculation. Of the 56 plants that developed from the 175 inoculations, 34 were pistillate plants and 19 were staminate plants, and 3 immature plants died because the host branch died. Pistillate plants flowered significantly earlier than staminate plants (4.1 vs. 4.7 years). Most pistillate plants produced seed in the fifth year, although one plant produced seed in 4 years. Thus, A. americanum probably has a 5-year life cycle on jack pine.

Description: Lodgepole pine dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium americanum Nutt. ex Engelm.) is one of the most damaging pathogens of jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) in western Canada. Jack pine forests in the colder, more northerly areas, however, are free of dwarf mistletoe, suggesting that the pathogen is limited by low temperature. The effect of extreme cold temperatures on germination rates of overwintering dwarf mistletoe seeds and survival of dwarf mistletoe germinants was evaluated. Germinative ability of overwintering seeds increased with increasing temperatures between 39 and 35 °C, regardless of seed source. Exposure period also strongly influenced germination rates. Exposure to temperatures near 38, 46, or 53 °C for 96 or 144 h was almost always lethal. At 37 °C, germination was greater after 48 h than after 96 h, although it was still significantly lower than in the controls. Temperatures down to 6 °C in late spring did not reduce germinant survival. Overall, these results may explain the absence of dwarf mistletoe from northern areas commonly exposed to periods in winter with minimum temperatures below about 40 °C. These areas are potentially at risk from the pathogen if the climate of Canada's northern interior continues to warm as it has over the last several decades.

Description: Information on the establishment of Arceuthobium americanum Nutt. ex Engelm. on its host, jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.), is required to improve knowledge of this critical development stage and improve pest management. Laboratory and field observations on four populations of A. americanum seeds from Alberta collected in 2000 and 2001 and histological observations on one population were used to determine the timing and histopathology of parasite establishment on jack pine. Seed germination remained near zero until 110 d after placing seeds in storage; germination peaked after 230 d in 2001 and between 230 and 320 d in 2002. Interannual variation in germination timing at study sites was high. Interannual variation in percentage of germination was low, as was variation in percentage of germination from different seed sources. Germinated seeds of each seed source were significantly larger (48%) than seeds that did not germinate. Penetration at the base of spur shoots began during JuneAugust and usually continued until JuneJuly of the next year. The odds of infection when the germinant survived until the second growing season were 2655 times greater than the odds of infection when the germinant withered in the first growing season. Symptoms of infection usually occurred 1315 months after germination and were consistent for all seed sources and sites.

Description: The MIMI investigation comprises three sensors covering the indicated energy ranges: the Ion and Neutral Camera (INCA) -- 7 keV/nuc 〈E〈200 keV/nuc (ions/neutrals): Charge-Energy-Mass-Spectrometer (CHEMS) -- 3〈E〈230 keV/e (ions),, and Low Energy Magnetospheric Measurement System (LEMMS) 0.02 〈E〈18 Mev (ions)/0.015 〈E〈1 Mev (electrons). Also, LEMMS measures high-energy electrons (E〉3 Mev) and protons (1.6 〈 E 〈 160 Mev) from the back end of the dual field-of-view telescope. The Saturn observation sequences began in January, 2004 and culminated in Saturn Orbit Insertion on July 1, 2004. The MIMI sensors observed substantial activity in interplanetary space for several months prior to SOI, including several interplanetary shocks associated with corotating interaction regions, numerous increases most likely originating from particle streams in the vicinity of the Saturnian bow shock and energetic neutral atoms (ENA) emanating from Saturn s magnetosphere. Results following SOI revealed: a dynamical magnetosphere with a day-night asymmetry and an 11-hour periodicity; several water-product ions (O+, OH+, H2O+), but little N+; inferred quantities of neutral gas sufficient to cause major losses in the trapped ions and electrons in the middle and inner magnetosphere; a Titan exosphere that is a copious source of ENA; INCA imaging through ENA has also revealed a previously unknown radiation belt residing inward of the D-ring that is most likely the result of double charge-exchange between the main radiation belt and the upper layers of Saturn s exosphere. Finally, there is ample evidence for the presence of substorm-like injections of plasma that subsequently corotates for a number of days before dissipating on the night-side magnetotail. The observations will be presented and discussed in the context of current theoretical models.