In August, the USDA is sponsoring Tree Check Month, which urges citizens to look for ALB and signs of damage caused by it. Adult
beetles are most active during the summer and early fall.
like sapsucker holes or other woodpecker damage.
Look also for round or oval shallow scars in the bark
where the females chew oviposition (egg-laying) sites.
What is most striking to me about these sites is that
on their outer edges, you can usually see the insect's
mandible chew marks on the bark; this is easier to
spot than just a nick or other scar on the tree. Look
also for frass, or the sawdust-like material, on the
ground at the base of the tree or at the crotches of
branches. Dead branches or canopy dieback can indicate something is wrong. Finally, look for the beetle
itself on the tree trunk, branches, on the ground, and
on nearby surfaces.
The most important thing you can do to protect your
municipal trees is to check them regularly and encourage homeowners to do so too. Just like with cancer,
early detection is crucial. It can mean the difference
between the six infested trees lost in Boston vs. over
www.urban-forestry.com
30,000 trees lost in Worcester County, Massachusetts.
Unfortunately, once ALB infests a tree, there is no cure
for that tree, but there are treatment options to save
the rest. Thankfully, the eradication strategies are
working. An eradication announcement for Boston
is expected next year, resulting in the shortest time
frame between initial detection and declaring eradication (just four years).
One great resource for municipal arborists that was
recently published by the USDA and the USFS is a
photo-rich publication titled "Asian Longhorned Beetle
and its Host Trees" (http://na.fs.fed.us/pubs/alb/alband-host-trees-09-12-2012-screen.pdf). It shows the
host trees as well as damage caused by the insect.
The APHIS ALB website also offers more information and downloadable materials, including videos
and more pictures and an online reporting function:
www.AsianLonghornedBeetle.com.
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