Forest Entomology Network

The objectives and research priorities of the network

Climate change is fundamentally altering our ecosystems, with Northern Europe experiencing particularly strong warming. Higher temperatures and more frequent droughts are affecting the distribution and abundance of animal populations, potentially damaging and killing trees. These increasingly frequent and severe disturbances in forests are altering ecosystem functions and causing challenges for silviculture, natural resource management, and the provision of ecosystem services.

The UEF Forest Entomology Network is a multidisciplinary group of researchers studying forest insects and developing new solutions to help society better prepare for and mitigate the harmful effects of climate change-induced disturbances in forests. Collaboration with other researchers is our key to success, so we work closely with several national and European academic institutions and research organizations to achieve our common goals.

The European Spruce Bark Beetle (Ips typographus) is at the top of our research agenda, but we are also interested in other forest insect species and forest health hazards, such as wind disturbances, defoliating moths and sawflies. We collaborate with institutions that have high level knowledge on remote sensing methods and utilize those in our research. Our staff also contributes to the education of future forest health professionals at the University of Eastern Finland, where several forestry students have completed their master’s theses under our guidance in recent years.