Invasion of the Long Horned Beetle

We have yet a new unwanted threat from Asia, most likely originating from China. It is called an Asian Longhorned Beetle and it decidedly a nasty little critter. It doesn't seem to have any known natural enemies and it kills deciduous and hardwood trees. It is called Alb for short and has raised some real concern in the New England maple sugaring industry and it should, if hasn't already, in the tourist industry.

I live in N.H. and fall foliage is famous here. We have tourists flocking to our beautiful White Mountains and lakes regions every fall. This results in helping out our infrastructure through tolls as well as infusing a well needed boost to the economy. We love and appreciate the beautiful color scheme we are lucky enough to have each autumn.

Not only do we love our trees, we equally enjoy the maple syrup made locally and shipped all over the country. Maple sugaring has been a tradition here for more generations than I could probably count. It is considered a serious industry here and in New England as a region.

Although it has not yet been documented in NH, the Asian Longhorned Beetle has recently found in Worchester, Ma. This new intrusion was discovered this year (2008). This unwelcome insect has been around for a number of years, at least since 2000 and some officials believe as far back as the 1980's. The consensus seems to be that it hitched a ride across the Pacific in wooden packing material. The impact has been slow but steady, not only affecting the Northeast but other states including CA, Fl, IL, IN, MI, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TX, WA, WI, and even inhabiting territories in Canada.

Disquiet has been quietly but steadfastly gathering in the northeast. The Asian Longhorned Beetle favors maple trees. Maple trees are spectacular in the palate of colors in the fall foliage season; they are visually magnificent and exhibit it in the bright reds and oranges of the landscape. They also have a more practical purpose than beauty. Sugar maples are the trees that produce maple syrup.

The beetles also find homes in other trees such as willows, elm, horse chestnut, black locusts, poplars, and mulberries. How can you identify these invasive tree killers? They are certainly visible to the naked eye, ranging from 1 inch to 1.5 inches. They have shiny black bodies with irregular spots on wings. They have long antennas with black and white stripes. The female's antennae are as long as her body and the males are twice as long. Further signs that they have made a home in your trees include perfectly round, dime size holes, oozing sap, and a telltale small but noticeable pile of tree sawdust from boring.

How you can rid the tree of these beetles if you have identified them? You cannot. As I previously stated, they have no real known predators. This is quite unfortunate because it means that they can only be contained. This entails cutting, chipping and or burning the tree. Insecticides are being used but it is not fully apparent how well they work. They used some in Chicago with success; the program was described as "imidacloprid treatments of healthy trees of potential host species". Quarantines have also been used.

Without public awareness this could be devastating effect on trees. Prevention seems to be the key as of now. US customs has required wooden packing from China to be chemically treated, dried via kiln and of course visually inspected since Sept. 18, 1998.

If you note these scavenging beetles it would be doing us all a favor if you notified your agriculture authorities. We have enough problems in the world without trees becoming eradicated, trees that we easily dismiss and take for granted. You can report suspected Asian Longhorned Beetles to the following authorities in the northeast:

VT: Jon Turmel, State Entomologist

Vermont Agency of Afgriculture

Laboratory Building

103 South Main Street

Waterbury, Vermont 05671-0101

802-241-3545

NH: Tom Durkis, State Entomologist

N.H. Dept. of Agriculture

Bldg.6 Hazen Drive

Concord, NH 03301

603-271-1109

List of sources:

Treehelp.com

Nationalplantboard.org/VT.html

Nationalplantboard.org/member/NH.html

Foreign Beetle Poses Threat to State's Trees, AP

En.wikepedia.org/wiki/Asian_long-hornedbeetle