Changes in climate may allow some invasive plant species to survive further north than they had previously. Warmer temperatures could aid the spread of kudzu and privet across Illinois by the end of the century. Milder winters could be beneficial for the emerald ash borer, which is already causing extensive damage to ash trees across the area. Drought stress, which could occur later in the growing season, may make trees susceptible to attacks by boring insects such as bronze birch borer and two-lined chestnut borer and to diseases such as Botryosphaeria canker. Wetter springs followed by hot dry summers could make oak wilt a larger problem in the Chicago Wilderness region in the coming decades. Gypsy moth could benefit from warming temperatures, but a fungal pathogen of the larvae has been shown to reduce populations in years with wet springs. High spring precipitation has been associated with severe outbreaks of bur oak blight in Iowa, which could put Chicago-area bur oaks at risk if springs become wetter. Milder winter temperatures could allow southern pine beetle to migrate northward. Beech bark disease and thousand cankers disease may benefit from warmer winter temperatures.