I'm hearing BIRDS in NC that belong in Charleston or Savannah! Is it the Fires

[KoKo]

that are sending REFUGEE BIRDS here to my Piedmont, NC?

From the "Beaufort Gazzett" Which encompases Hilton Head Island..(resort of Rich and Famous Dems for Renaissance Weekend (Clinton) and now the Sonny Perdue DEMS!

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Hunting Island's dying trees bode ill for the rest of the state
Published Sunday March 18 2007
By JOEY HOLLEMAN
The State
Like brown teardrops streaming down nature's green face, thousands of dead and dying redbay trees line the roads and trails of Hunting Island State Park.

Experts worry that the destruction of these trees, which live in the shadows of loblolly pines and palmettos along the coast, could be a harbinger for the entire Southeast. Damaged redbays have been found in 32 counties of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. The Asian insect causing the problem -- the redbay ambrosia beetle -- has no known predators, and scientists have been reluctant to spray pesticides for fear of killing beneficial bugs.

In some areas, the entire understory between the tall Sabal palmettos and the ground-clinging saw palmettos is brown with wilted redbay leaves. Volunteers counted 2,068 dead trees

within 30 feet of roads and trails in February. By the time the beetle is through with the island, experts suspect it will wipe out the entire redbay population.

"It's very sad to see it," said Laurie Reid, an entomologist with the S.C. Forestry Commission. "People visit a state park expecting to see green trees."

'IT LOOKS LIKE A FIRE HIT'

The beetle first showed up in traps at Port Wentworth in Savannah in 2002, likely arriving earlier in redbay wood used in packing crates carrying goods from Asia. A fungus left behind by the beetle spreads throughout redbays' vascular system, causing leaves to wilt and the tree to die.

Scientists weren't sure what was killing the trees until 2005. Technically called laurel wilt, the disease won't get the attention accorded the Southern pine beetle, which attacks a cash crop, or the wooly adelgid, which is wiping out majestic hemlocks in the mountains.

Redbay's wood, only occasionally used in furniture, has little economic value. The redbay leaf has the same aromatic attributes as the bay leaves used in cooking, but most of the commercial bay leaves are from species grown in California or the Mediterranean. Landscapers working in urban areas like the redbay for its extreme drought tolerance, but they can find other species.

"You don't really notice it because it's an understory tree, but it does add a lot of green to the forest," said Laurel Weeks, interpretive program manager at Hunting Island.

It's one of eight major tree species in maritime forests on South Carolina's coastal islands. While redbays can grow to 60 feet tall, most are in the 15- to 25-foot range. It is most common along the coast, but its natural range reaches the Midlands.

It's one of those evergreen species you don't notice -- until its leaves die and stay brown year-round like they have at Hunting Island.

"It's awful," said Robert Lee, a former Lowcountry resident visiting Hunting Island from Knoxville, Tenn. "It looks like a fire hit. It used to be so lush and green."

THE DAMAGE IS DONE

Even if it's not important economically, the redbay plays a large role in the ecosystem, Reid said. Songbirds, quail and deer feed on the leaves and the small black fruit. More importantly, the Palamedes swallowtail butterfly lays its eggs exclusively in the redbay, and several other species of swallowtail prefer the redbay to other trees.

Forestry and agricultural scientists from South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, along with federal officials from Washington, have been monitoring the redbay disease since 2004.

"We're trying to find out the biology of the beetle, find out where the beetle is and where it isn't," Reid said. In its native Asia, the beetle isn't a problem because it attacks only stressed trees. Here, it attacks healthy trees, speeding its spread.

Limited to three counties in 2004, the beetle now is in 32. It spreads about 20 miles per year with no help. But strong winds or careless campers taking firewood to their next stop could speed the spread. Signs have been posted at Hunting Island asking campers not to take redbay wood off the island.

Spots of dead redbay leaves already dot the new hiking trail at Edisto Beach State Park north of Hunting Island, and Hilton Head officials have been dealing with the disease for a couple of years.

While the beetle and the fungus have shown up in similar tree species, damage has been limited. Florida officials hope it doesn't spread to avocados, an important cash crop.

In recent months, scientists have tested pesticides on infected areas in Georgia and Florida. That might be the only hope for the species in the Southeast.

At Hunting Island, the damage already is done. The State Park Service is debating whether to cut the dead trees and burn them on site or shred them and leave small piles of pulp throughout the forest. Neither solution deals with the hole left in the forest.

"It does fill a niche in the maritime forest," Weeks said. "We don't know if something is going to come along to take its place."


Copyright 2007 The Beaufort Gazette • May not be republished in any form without the express written permission of the publisher.

[Donnachaidh]

1. we have ASH on our windshield from the fires in NW Georgia

I wish we had a refuge to fly to. The air quality has gone into the dangerous red zone the last few days.

[KoKo]

3. I've been disturbed that DU'ers who live in SW /SC/GA/FLA are not posting ENOUGH about this!

It made me feel like there was "nothing going on!" My daughter lives in Boca and the Smoke/Fires were down there in West Palm down through Boca to Miami...and it was causing them respiratory distress...BUT NO ONE ON DU mentioned it..that stayed up...anyway on this site.

:shrug: I remeber how DU'ers were pulling weight for our New Orleans Folks who were going through Katrina...but it seemed very little of DU even cared about these MASSIVE FIRES in GA/Through Florida and that the SMOKE went even up into TENNESEE! and down to MIAMI?

Is this the CORPORATE STUFF? DISNEY and HILTON HEAD and FLA don't want Media DISCOURAGING those RENTALS from NE and MID-SOUTH who vacation there to be put off? ISN'T IT ALL ABOUT THE MONEY? And Selling of CONDO's AND VILLAS AND HOUSES IN THE SOTHEAST that there would be CLAMP DOWN ON THE SMOKE?

:shrug:

[napi21]

2. I'm sure you are! Yesterday AM I walked outside and thought some

idiot neighbor was burning stuff again, the smell of smoke was really strong. Then I found out that it was the smoke from the south Ga. fires. We are in North Ga. and well over 150 miles away!

From all I hear, the best we can hope for is a severe rain to put these fires out!

[KoKo]

4. I just checked out the Beaufort, SC Gazette..Newspaper...and it's up there as well

which must be making some who had deposits on Villa and Condo/House Rentals from the Northeast, very uncomfortable bringing teir kids down to the beach and dealing with smoke. What about all the families who have kids who suffer from ASTHMA? They bring their kids down and they have smoke everywhere.

BUT Neither Disney nor Hilton Head nor Charleston or Savannah will ever reveal this to the MS Corporate Media..like CNBC, CNN/MSNBC...because the Tourism Industry, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE LOBBY or DISNEY wants ANYONE TO KNOW THAT THE SOUTHEAST IS FILLED WITH SMOKE ...SOME DAYS" because THE WIND BLOWS!

:-( HOW THE MEDIA LIES TO PROTECT THE BIG GUYS IN "Real Estate, Disney, Business" and BUSHIES!