SummaryA total of 210 Norway spruce trees with stem wounds resulting from bark peeling by moose (Alces alces) were examined in three 45–50‐year‐old stands that contained 20‐30 of damaged trees. Injured stems were between 8 and 40 cm diameter at breast height (d.b.h.) and showed 1 to 23‐year‐old wounds. Wounds varied in size from 2 to 4815 cm2. The size of injury correlated negatively with the age of the injury (r=‐0.24; p=0.004), and positive correlation was established between the age of the injury and d.b.h. of the wounded tree (r=0.50; p=0.0001). Each wound was sampled once using an increment borer and fungi were isolated. Among basidiomycetes,Stereum sanguinolentumwas the most common (isolated from 26.7 of the damaged stems). Other common species wereCylindrobasidium evolvens(23.8),Amylostereum areolatum(5.2),A. chailletii(0.5),Heterobasidion annosum(5.2),Peni‐ophorapithya(1.4),Sistotrema brinkmannii(1.0). The ascomyceteNectria fuckelianawas the most common among all fungi (present in 35.7 of bark peeling wounds). The frequency ofS. sanguinolentuminfection correlated positively with the age of the injury (r=0.27; p=0.001) and the opposite relationship was revealed forC. evolvens(r=−0.30; p=0.0001). Furthermore,C. evolvensinfection correlated positively with the wound size (r=0.30; p=0.0001) and negatively with the tree d.b.h. (r=−0.20; p=0.004). A positive correlation was found between tree d. b. h. and the occurrence in stems ofH. annosum(r=0.23; p=0.001 andN. fuckeliana(r=0.23; p=0.0006). The spruce bark beetleDendroctonus micansattacked 14.8 of wounded trees. Presence in stems ofN. fuckelianawas associated significantly with theD. micansattack (r=0.190; p =0.006; χ2test: p=0.01). Except for a negative correlation between infections ofS. sanguinolentumandH. annosum(r=‐0.140; p=0.04), no significant relationship between fu
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