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Episode 1801

Last broadcast Thursday October 5, 2006

Sudden Oak Death

Trouble is brewing in Oregon's southwest coastal forests in the form of a deadly microbial pest that, if it takes hold, could devastate woodlands throughout the state. Oregon considers the threat so serious that if a single dead tanoak turns up infected, rapid response teams are ordered to slash and burn everything for hundreds of yards around it. Crews even have the authority to act on private land and nurseries if the disease is found. So far, the counterattack has contained SOD in the wild to a 22-square-mile area near Brookings. In the words of one ecologist, "this is the northwest's equivalent to the Irish potato famine or the East Coast chestnut blight." If Sudden Oak Death goes unchecked, it could mean the end of the tanoak species and cause significant damage to Oregon's forest ecosystems.

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Web Feature: FAQ's about Sudden Oak Death

For more information:

California Oak Mortality Task Force Website

• The Oak Mortality Task Force was set up as "the" resource for information about Sudden Oak Death. Their website provides abundant photos, reports, maps, research papers, publications…you name it. If you can’t find it on their site it probably doesn’t exist.
• Online: nature.berkeley.edu/comtf/

Sudden Oak Death in Oregon

• This site from the Oregon State University Extension Service provides additional links to resources and research about SOD.
• Online: extension.oregonstate.edu/emergency/oak_death.php

For questions about SOD in forests:

• Contact: Everett Hansen, Oregon State University
• Tel: 541-737-5243

For questions about SOD in nursery plants:

• Contact: Jennifer Parke, Oregon State University
• Tel: 541-737-8170

Restoring Animal Corridors

We see our roads and highways as a way to get around, but for some animals, they represent deadly asphalt barriers that keep them from moving as their lifecycles demand. Road kill is a growing national problem. Every year 1.5 million animal/vehicle collisions occur on U.S. roads, killing over 200 people. As population increases, some species are being fragmented into pockets of habitat too small to support long-term survival. And roads, carrying ever more vehicles, are acting as deadly natural barriers, preventing animals from moving as they must to get food, shelter, escape danger and find mates. FIELD GUIDE looks at some of the methods that have been tried in Oregon and elsewhere in the world to help animals move as their lifecycle demands.

For more information:

Ecostudies Institute: Road Ecology

• Find information at the Ecostudies Institute's website about their programs and research on reducing the impacts that roads have on wildlife.
• Online: www.ecoinst.org/ecostudies_pages/road_ecology.html

Wildlife Collision Prevention Program Website

• Online: www.wildlifeaccidents.ca

Oregon Wildlife Movement Strategy

• The Oregon Wildlife Movement Strategy is new partnership between Oregon Departments of Transportation and Fish & Wildlife and other public agencies to address wildlife passage in the state of Oregon. See the Oregon Conservation Strategy Report for more information on wildlife habitat conservation priorities, including wildlife movement.
• Online: www.dfw.state.or.us/conservationstrategy/

For questions about transportation/wildlife issues:

• Contact: Melinda Trask (ODOT)
• Tel: (503) 986-3504
• Email:

For questions about wildlife corridors and priority habitats:

• Contact: Audrey Hatch (ODFW)
• Tel: (541) 757-4263 ext 242
• Email: