Asian Longhorned Beetle in Ohio

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) announce that surveys are under way in Bethel, Ohio, after the detection and identification of the Asian longhorned beetle. Bethel is located 30 miles southeast of Cincinnati.

First discovered in the United States in 1996, Asian longhorned beetles attack several species of trees including maple, willow, horsechestnut, buckeye and American elm. While in its larvae stage, the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) kills trees by tunneling into large branches and the trunk.
Ohio is the fourth state to detect ALB, which APHIS confirmed in Bethel after a citizen reported finding unusual damage in three maple trees to an Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry service forester. Previous infestations sites, where the beetles are being successfully contained, include Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.
APHIS and ODA inspection crews are surveying the southern portion of Bethel and the surrounding area to determine the extent of the ALB infestation. Crews will inspect host tree species susceptible to ALB for signs of the wood-boring beetle using ground surveyors and specially trained tree climbers.
APHIS and the ODA are working cooperatively with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Ohio State University Extension, the USDA Agricultural Research Service, the USDA Forest Service, and the town of Bethel to evaluate the scope of the infestation and to inform the public about the exotic, invasive pest.
Adult ALB are usually large, distinctive-looking insects measuring 1- to 1-1/2 inches long, not including antennae. Their white-banded antennae can be as long as the body itself in females and almost twice the body length in males.

Signs of infestation include perfectly round exit holes (about 3/8 to 1/2 inch in diameter) made by adult beetles when they emerge from trees; the pockmarks on tree trunks and branches where female beetles deposit eggs; frass (wood shavings and saw dust) produced by larvae feeding and tunneling; early fall coloration of leaves or dead branches, and running sap produced by the tree at the egg laying sites, or in response to larval tunneling.

If you believe you have seen this beetle or evidence of its damage in Pennsylvania please call your local Penn State Extension Office, Bureau of Forestry Office or Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.



Pennsylvania 4-H Forestry Field Day Results

Beautiful sunny weather graced this year’s 4-H Forestry Field Day held at Laurel Haven Conservation Education Center in Julian, PA on May 7, 2011. The event consisted of two tracks. The junior (non-competitive) track taught younger 4-H members basic skills relating to forestry; while the senior track was a competitive event where “4-H foresters” from across the state demonstrated their knowledge and forestry skills.
The top five winners in the senior track included Nichele Olson, Sam Mc Gaughran, Jesse Isenberg, and Garrett Richardson from Indiana County, and Darton Harwick from Tioga County. Four of these youth will represent Pennsylvania at the 2011 National 4-H Forestry Invitational held in late July at Jackson’s Mill 4-H Conference Center, Weston, WV. Participants in both the state and national program demonstrate their skills in tree measurement, tree identification, forest health (insect and disease identification), compass use, topographic map reading, and applied forestry principles.
The junior track enjoyed learning tree id skills, compass techniques, and reading forest history signs. They also enjoyed a demonstration by the Penn State Woodman’s Team!
Extension Forestry Educator David Jackson of Centre County, and Sanford Smith, Extension Specialist, in Penn State’s School of Forest Resources, organized this year’s event. Also assisting were 4-H volunteers Chad Barclay and Ashlee Earley. Barclay and Earley are past state 4-H Forestry winners. They are also currently a forestry student at Penn State and a forester for the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry respectively. This year’s Forestry Field Day received strong sponsorship from Pine Creek Lumber, Mill Hall, PA (a division of Bingaman Lumber), Pennsylvania Sustainable Forestry Initiative, and Domtar (Paper Mill), Johnsonburg, PA
For more information, contact Smith at sss5@psu.edu or Jackson at drj11@psu.edu.

- Submitted by Dr. Sanford Smith, Extension Specialist, Natural Resources and Youth Education (sss5@psu.edu)