Phenological maps can depict the development and seasonal activities (phenology) of invasive insects at area-wide scales, such as counties, states, or entire nations. When regularly updated using real-time and forecast climate data, these maps may improve the timeliness of early detection and control tactics that target specific life stages. Rapid responses to invasive insects may increase the likelihood that populations are eradicated or controlled before they can spread or increase in size. Phenological maps may also be used to assess pest establishment risk, investigate pest–host interactions, and measure climate-driven changes in pest phenology.
Degree-day lookup table maps show the current life stages or phenological events of an organism that correspond to specified values or ranges of accumulated degree-days for a specified date (Figure 3). Thus, degree-day accumulations, which are depicted in generic degree-day maps, are matched to specific points or events during the life cycle. For insects, life cycle points (and events) could typically include the egg stage present, egg hatch, larval stage present, pupal stage present, adult emergence and presence, and egg laying. The simplicity of the approach and its applicability to multiple organisms has sustained its use for several years.
Phenological maps can support pest managers in timing treatments or other control tactics that target certain life stages. For example, phenological maps of egg hatch and larval development for the spongy moth were developed to support the timing of insecticidal sprays conducted for “stop the spread” programs in the eastern United States [30][31][32].
Maps used for within-season decision support of invasive insects depend on having access to real-time daily Tmin and Tmax data with spatial resolutions that are appropriate for the needs of decision-makers. For example, phenological maps at a 4 km resolution are generally sufficient to support pest surveillance programs for the entire CONUS [15], but are probably not appropriate for smaller scales, such as a county or city. Real-time PRISM data with a spatial resolution of 4 km are freely available, and higher resolution (800 m) data can be purchased from the PRISM group. Real-time DDRP forecasts at USPest.org are produced using PRISM data (4 km resolution) as climatic inputs, whereas monthly updated North America Multi-Model Ensemble (NMME) 7-month forecasts or recent 10-year average PRISM data (calculated on a bimonthly basis) are used to predict pest phenology up to the end of the year [16].
Phenological mapping for within-season decision support in areas outside of the United States is typically hindered by a lack of real-time gridded daily Tmin and Tmax data. However, historical datasets may be used for model development and validation, such as those for Europe [6958], continental North America and Hawaii [7059][7160], Brazil [7261][7362], China [7463][7564], India [7665], and Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan [7766].
Some phenological mapping studies overcame an absence of readily available gridded daily climate data by interpolating weather station data over a landscape of interest using custom software [31][50][7867][7968][8069][8170][8271]. For example, the GEO-BUG platform offered four automated interpolation methods to map the date at which a pest insect species reached a specified life stage in the United Kingdom [7867][8069]. Interpolation methods commonly applied to Tmin and Tmax estimates include those based on distance analyses (e.g., inverse distance weighted and spline interpolation) or geostatistics (e.g., kriging and multiple regression) [33][47][8069][8170][8271][8372].