CO2 Boosts Trees, But Ups Damage From Forest Pests
Greenhouse gas pollution often gives forests helpful growing boosts, but burgeoning bounties of carbon dioxide-fertilized canopies can also whet the appetites of leaf-munching bugs.
Scientists warn that damage inflicted by tiny forest pests could worsen as carbon dioxide levels rise. Early research suggests that attacks by caterpillars, beetles, termites and other insects in some forests could be enough to cancel out projected increases in tree growth rates.
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/co2-boosts-trees-ups-damage-of-forest-pests-18757
By Mark Stevens (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)