The online Alberta Forest Pest Damage Diagnostic System provides Albertans with an expansive database detailing host trees, symptoms, biology, impact, terms and images relating to forest pests in Alberta.The System has several useful tools for diagnosis, searches, and comparisons, including galleries of pest - related images and a glossary of terms. All these provide information about Alberta's forest pests and their host trees. This "How To" guide is intended to provide details about the main functions in the Diagnostic System. The headers below can be expanded to give greater detail to aid this system’s users.
Please note that by default the pest "Common Name" is used throughout the system and may include a pest common name for an individual species, or a pest group name if there is a group of related pest species that cannot be easily distinguished from symptoms alone. In some instances pest or tree scientific names can used to conduct pest diagnosis.
The Alberta Forest Pest Damage Diagnostic System allows you to select tree species, tree height groups, location of damage on trees and observed symptoms to diagnose the most probable causative pest and then view details of the pest.
The more symptoms selected, the more specific the diagnosis will be. However, keep in mind that more than one pest can attack a tree at a given time. Unrelated symptoms may result in a misdiagnosis. If you suspect multiple pests, you may want to get results for one symptom at a time.
Diagnosis using the Search by Symptoms function is split into two groups: Broadleaf and Conifer. All the height classes of broadleaf trees are grouped together for diagnosis; for diagnosis purposes conifer trees are divided into three height categories because of the host age preference of many of the conifer pests.
"Forest Pest Details" are provided during each search method and contain more detailed information about forest pests. For a given pest, this information will include such things as: images of the pest or it's damage; Common and Scientific Names (if applicable); pest status (major vs. minor); and other relevant material.
Headers below Pest Details can be expanded for more information on the following:
In this Diagnostic System three types of searches can be conducted – Search by symptoms, search by pests or search by host trees. Each of these modes is described below:
OR
There are two ways to view the definition of a term. You may use the search option or select from the alphabetized menu.
Note: The search and menu are sensitive to its contents. If there are no contents, the letter will not appear in the menu and the term will not appear in the search list.
Please contact us at for-info@gov.ab.ca if you have suggestions to improve this diagnostic system or find any errors or omissions.
Sunil Ranasinghe initiated the project to produce a web-based forest pest damage diagnostic system for Alberta. Completion of this project would not have been possible if not for the unfailing support, technical assistance and reviews provided by Christine Koinek, Forest Health Officer of the Forsest Health Section. Hideji Ono, Christine Kominek, Mike Underschultz, Margaret Roberts (nee Molinari), and Linda Joy of the Forest Health Section, Forest Management Branc, Public Lands and Forests Division of Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (ASRD) helped to cmpile the database used for this project. Mike Underschultz and Cody Crocker managed the images using in this system. This diagnostic sys was reviewed internally by the forest health officers (Tom Hutchinson, Erica Lee, Daniel Lux, and Mike Maximchuk). Dr. Herb Cerezke (Ret.) and Dr. Ken Mallett at the Norther Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service reviewed the original database for technical accuracy. The support of the following agencies and individuals who provided the images used for this project is gratefully acknowledged (for specific individual credit, please see the image itself):
The Forest Pest Damage Diagnostic System is designed to diagnose damage caused by common forest pests of Alberta. This system is not designed to diagnose damage caused by forest pests of minor importance or of rare occurrence, exceptional or unusual incidence of pests, or multiple pests simultaneously attacking a given host.
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the contents, quality of images, and diagnoses made by using this system, the Government of Alberta, the Minister and his/her employees, agents, contractors and servants shall not be liable for any claims, costs, losses, or damages, including any special, indirect, incidental or consequential loss or damage, which any user may incur or experience as a result of any direct or indirect use of this system.
The user agrees that the system and each part thereof, any formatting or presentation thereof, any storage media on which it is provided, and any communication of any kind, incidental or in relation thereto, is provided to the user "as is" and without warranty or representation as to any matter including but not limited to whether the system and storage media are correct, accurate or free from error, defect, danger, or hazard, and whether either or both are otherwise useful or suitable for any use the user may make of it.