Alarm in the Berchtesgaden National Park: Invasive mushrooms threaten mountain pines!

Alarm in the Berchtesgaden National Park: Invasive mushrooms threaten mountain pines!

Berchtesgaden, Deutschland - An alarming incident shakes the Berchtesgaden National Park! An invasive mushroom from North and Central America, which causes the dreaded "brown stain disease", spreads rapidly and threatens the mountain pine pinees that thrive high up in the Alps. This disease was first discovered in 2022 and leads to brown needle tips and the death of the trees. The mountain pine is not only a survival artist at extreme altitudes, but also a decisive factor for the ecosystem that supports other plant species. But now everything is on the brink!

The research director Barbara de Araújo and her team do everything they can to examine the far -reaching consequences of this threat. They have set up 72 wooden boxes with seeds of different tree species to observe how the mountain pine affects the microclimate, the floor and the forest rejuvenation. The first results are expected in two years, and the urgency of this research could not be greater!

The threat from the invasive mushroom

The main cause of the needle tan, the fungus Lecanosticta Acicola, is spread through water particles in the air and penetrates into the pine needles via the gap openings. Particularly warm and moist weather favors the spread. The national park administration warns that the conditions in Bavaria could additionally favor the mushroom and suggests stricter controls at airports to prevent the introduction of pine plants. These measures are urgently necessary, because the risk of an epidemic spread is very high according to the Federal Research Center Forest in Austria!

The situation is serious: the mountain pine stabilizes the soil and the climate, and its decline could have catastrophic consequences for the entire ecosystem. Time is pushing and the scientists have to act quickly to secure the survival of this important tree species and the health of the national park!