Climate change will amplify many existing stressors to forest ecosystems in the Midwest, such as invasive species, insect pests and pathogens, and disturbance regimes.

Forest ecosystems throughout the Midwest Region are exposed to a range of natural, introduced, and anthropogenic stressors. Stressors such as invasive plants, forest pests, diseases, droughts, and floods are expected to become more damaging under climate change, and these factors may interact in unpredictable ways.