Monitoraggio e valutazione del danno degli insetti defogliatori su diverse specie di Quercus in Sicilia

Most of the insects feeding on oaks are usually ‘in balance’ with their host trees, causing occasional damage. When severe defoliations regularly occur, oak trees vulnerability to the complex of factors causing the overall decline syndrome can increase. Assessing canopy damage due to defoliating insects through the usually adopted visual methods is quite difficult, requiring highly experienced operators and a long time spent to collect field data. The present research has been carried out to investigate the different susceptibility of Sicilian oak species to defoliating insect attacks, in particular the oak moth Tortrix viridana (L.) (Lepidoptera Tortricidae), with the aim to assess the rel…