Spruce Budworm

Maine SBW Task Force

  • University of Maine
  • Cooperative Forestry Reasearch Unit
  • Center for Research on Sustainable Forests
  • Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation & Forestry
  • Maine Forest Products Council
  • Maine Tree Foundation

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The UMaine Spruce Budworm Lab provides population data for Maine’s forests

The UMaine Spruce Budworm Lab opened its doors in 2021 with support from the CFRU to monitor spruce budworm (SBW) populations. Sampling done by the UMaine SBW Lab during fall and winter is essential to identifying spruce budworm larvae (L2s) during their hibernation period before they emerge and begin feeding on foliage in the spring. Read more below about the expanding spruce budworm population in Maine as of November 2024 based on the most recent results from the UMaine Spruce Budworm ... Read More ›

$14 million set aside to suppress spruce budworm outbreak

Maine Public reports on funding that will be used for spruce budworm mitigation. Click here to read the full article. "A federal budget deal could include $14 million dollars to help suppress a spruce budworm outbreak threatening Maine’s northern forests. Maine Republican Senator Susan Collins said the funding was included in a disaster relief bill under consideration by lawmakers in Washington." Maine Public, December 2024 ... Read More ›

Maine Public speaks with landowner about concerns and plans for response to the growing spruce budworm population

Maine Public spoke with Alex Ingraham of Pingree Associates, one of the largest landowners in the state, about their concerns over ballooning spruce budworm populations in Maine. Click here to read the full article. "About 250,000 acres on the northeast border are at risk from an infestation triggered by moths blown in from huge outbreaks in Quebec and Ontario, according to Alex Ingraham with Pingree Associates one of the biggest landowners in the state. If left unaddressed, the ... Read More ›

Recent Portland Press Herald article covers growing spruce budworm populations in Maine

Reporters from the Portland Press Herald interviewed budworm experts from the Maine Forest Service and the University of Maine to cover the growing SBW situation in Maine. Click here to read the full article and visit the UMaine Spruce Budworm Lab L2 Map to keep tabs on the growing populations in Maine. “We have a massive population across the border that is inflating our numbers, with probably half of our moths coming over from Canada and half expanding out from local hot spots,” Thompson ... Read More ›

2022 Spruce Budworm Monitoring Report released by Maine Forest Service

"Despite the recent downward trend in local Maine SBW populations and activity reflected in our monitoring program, we cannot conclude that SBW populations have returned to and will remain at endemic levels in the upcoming years. As historical knowledge tells us and as evidenced in our more recent long-term dataset going back to 1992, populations are likely to continue to fluctuate. For that reason, we will continue to carefully monitor the situation and provide timely updates to our ... Read More ›

2021 Spruce Budworm Monitoring Report released by Maine Forest Service

2021 marked the first year of the current spruce budworm population build-up that aerial surveys were able to detect larval feeding damage and the second year that appreciable feeding damage was detectable during ground surveys. Despite this, average spruce budworm moth capture across Maine has dropped for the second consecutive monitoring season. Results of the CFRU-led L2 survey are forthcoming and will help to shed additional light on Maine’s spruce budworm situation heading into ... Read More ›