Remote detection of hemlock woolly adelgid infestations in southern New Hampshire and Maine

The hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) is an invasive pest damaging Eastern and Carolina hemlock on the east coast of the United States. Maine and New Hampshire are currently the northernmost front of HWA spread. Developing methods to remotely detect infested stands is paramount in monitoring the spread of this pest. The effect of HWA on hemlock needle reflectance was evaluated using laboratory spectroscopy, pigment extractions and fluorescence measurements. Hemlock habitat suitability was modeled using MaxEnt software and thirteen environmental predictor variables; overall accuracy was 68.2%. Partition modeling of multi-year (1995-2013) Landsat Thematic Mapper imagery was used to develop classification rules that detect and predict HWA infested areas (R 2 = 0.782). Overall agreement with known HWA infestations was 86.7% in conifer forests, 44.3% in mixed forests and 31.6% in deciduous forests. Targeted field surveys of fourteen stands predicted to be infested resulted in eleven new HWA detections.