With the very visible impact on Violet Township and the Pickerington area’s ash tree population from the emerald ash borer, it is important to be on the lookout for the newest invasive species well in advance of its potential arrival.
A new invasive threat to Ohio’s woodlands was discovered in southwest Ohio in June 2011. The Asian longhorned beetle (ALB), a species native to Asia, was found in several yard trees in the community of Bethel, located in Clermont County.
Since the initial discovery, an area of 61 square miles has been quarantined by both the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to limit the spread of ALB into other portions of the state. The quarantine restricts movement of regulated articles – such as firewood, stumps and roots of all hardwood trees, as well as logs and nursery stock of ALB host trees – out of the regulated area.
ALB infests a wide range of tree species, including all varieties of maple, elm, willow, birch, buckeye and horse chestnut, poplar, ash, sycamore, hackberry, golden raintree, katsura, mimosa, and European mountain ash. In Ohio, ALB is currently only known to exist in Clermont County; however, this wide array of hosts makes it a threat to the forested resources across the state.
Other ALB infestations currently exist in parts of Massachusetts and New York. Infestations in Chicago; Hudson County, N.J.; and Islip, N.Y. have been declared eradicated.
The adult ALB is ¾ to 1 ½ inches long and black with white spots, and has long antennae – at least as long as the body – that are banded black and white. Evidence of this beetle in an infested tree can be seen in pits that they chew to lay their eggs and in large exit holes where the adults emerge from the tree. The ALB larvae cause the actual damage to the trees by chewing galleries through the heartwood of the stem or branches.
In Bethel, eradication activities are still underway. ODA and USDA APHIS are conducting surveys of the area to locate infested trees, and all infested trees are being removed and ground into chips to destroy all life forms of the beetle. In addition to assisting with ground surveys, in 2012, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources initiated a restoration plan to distribute non-host tree species to landowners who have had trees removed from their property. To date, the Tree Canopy Enhancement Program has distributed and assisted with the planting of nearly 1,000 trees.
As of June 14, 12,855 infested trees had been located, and 11,249 of these trees had already been removed. Surveys to find all of the infested trees are still ongoing. If you think you see signs of ALB, or would like more information on this invasive pest, visit:
- -www.beetlebusters.info;
- -www.agri.ohio.gov/topnews/asianbeetle; or
- -www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/asian_lhb/index.shtml.
To report a potential sighting of ALB in Ohio, call 513-381-7180.
The Fairfield Soil and Water Conservation District hopes that education and awareness now will help protect Violet Township and the Pickerington area’s wooded stream corridors, woodlands and street trees.
By Tom Macy, special projects and forest health coordinator, Ohio Department of Natural Resources And Jonathan Ferbrache, resource specialist, Fairfield Soil and Water Conservation District
