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Invasive Fungi
Based on records from the Global Invasive Species Database, invasive fungal species found in at least one of the southeastern U.S. states including Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi are presented below:
Chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) White Pine Blister Rust (Cronartium ribicola) Chestnut Blight (Cryphonectria parasitica) Dutch Elm Disease (Ophiostoma ulmi)
Invasive Fungi of the Southeastern United States For information about invasive fungi inhabiting the southeastern United States, refer to the Web resources for invasive fungi shown on this page. These resources contain the scientific names of invasive fungi listed above that occur in at least one of the specified states, according to the Global Invasive Species Database. NBII Metadata clearinghouse records about invasive fungi are also available from the NBII Metadata Clearinghouse.
Species Spotlight
[Photo: Robert L. Anderson, USDA Forest Service, www.forestryimages.org]
Chestnut blight Cryphonectria parasitica
Description:C. parasitica forms yellowish or orange fruiting bodies about the size of a pin head on the older portion of cankers. Spores may exude from the pycnidia as orange, curled horns during moist weather. Stem cankers are either swollen or sunken, and the sunken type may be grown over with bark. The bark covering swollen cankers is usually loose at the ends of the canker. Trees die back above the canker and may sprout below it.
Life History:The host tree dies when a swollen canker caused by fungal infection girdles the tree, preventing further growth and disrupting the transport of nutrients through the plant's vascular system. The fungus is prevalent in the environment and enters the tree through a wound site.
Habitat:C. parasitica is a pathogenic fungus affecting primarily Chestnut trees including the American Chestnut (Castanea dentate). It also attacks other hardwood tree species including Oaks.