Although emerald ash borer (EAB) kills close to 100% of the mature native ash trees that it encounters in the Northeast, a very small percentage of the trees that it attacks not only survive, but remain healthy years after the vast majority of nearby trees have been killed. These trees, which have been found for every widespread Northeastern ash species, are known as “lingering ash” and provide hope because some have EAB resistance that can be used to breed highly resistant trees.

The Ecological Research Institute (ERI) has developed the Monitoring and Managing Ash (MaMA) program, which facilitates the detection of lingering ash through 1) data collection projects that determine where and when to search for lingering ash; and 2) integrating lingering ash detection into ash management. MaMA has already detected of over 100 lingering ash in New York, where it was first implemented, and enabled collection of material for resistance breeding at Cornell University. The MaMA program plays a prominent role in the Tree Species in Peril collaborative initiative led by The Nature Conservancy in collaboration with the US Forest Service.

In the workshop, you will learn about how you can participate in MaMA’s citizen-scientist and land-manager-based research projects and also how to incorporate lingering ash detection into ash/EAB management. This free workshop will include hands-on training in all of MaMA’s research projects, including setting up a plot for the MaMA Monitoring Plots Network at the "ash cathedral" in Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest. Space is limited, so please make sure to register soon. If you have any questions about the workshop, please email them to [email protected]. For more information on MaMA, visit www.MonitoringAsh.org.

Workshop presented by ERI in collaboration with Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Museum of the White Mountains. It is funded by The Nature Conservancy.