The persistence of blue ash in the aftermath of emerald ash borer may be due to adult oviposition preferences and reduced larval performance

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Abstract We examined the health of mature blue ash, Fraxinus quadrangulata , in two forests in southwestern Ohio in relation to that of mature white ash , F. americana , and examined the potential importance of oviposition preferences and larval resistance in the persistence of blue ash. Both blue ash and white ash were largely unaffected by emerald ash borer in 2012. By 2018, nearly 90% of the blue ash trees observed in these forests had full or nearly full canopies, as opposed to less than 20% of the white ash encountered in our studies. In 2021, blue ash maintained a similar degree of canopy health as in 2018, but no standing live mature white ashes remained. Bark removals revealed no current or past larval feeding attempts in blue ash in 2018 or 2021, except for one attacked and killed tree in 2018. All white ash trees examined were attacked. In a laboratory bioassay with cut stems, emerald ash borer larvae fed less and grew significantly more slowly on blue ash than on white ash. Both reduced larval performance and reduced adult oviposition likely contribute to the persistence of blue ash in forests devastated by emerald ash borer.

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