An Asian long-horned beetle rests on a branch. (Courtesy photo)

Last week the news broke that an infestation of Asian long-horned beetles had been discovered in Worcester trees. The Worcester Telegram and Gazette reported on Aug. 7 that the beetles had been found in the Kendrick Field section of Worcester. Officials are concerned because this invasive, tree-boring insect, which is native to China, has no natural enemies in this country, and no chemical insecticide has been able to stop them. For now wildlife officials are relying on a strategy of cutting down infected trees after the first frost and destroying them. The Telegram and Gazette reported that 1,700 trees had been cut in Chicago after beetle infestations were discovered in 1998, and that in New York City, 6,200 trees have been removed.

The beetle is of particular concern to maple growers, since maple trees are among those preferred by the insect. Harvard maple producer Jim Burns of Ayer Road, who is on the board of directors for the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association, said the threat from the beetles is “really serious business.” He said that parts of Worcester, West Boylston, Holden, and Shrewsbury are currently under quarantine, with no nursery goods being allowed into or out of those areas. Burns said that a lot of money had been spent containing severe infestations in New York and New Jersey, and that as of now there is no “silver bullet” to address the problem.

Burns said that Mass. Maple is preparing information cards to distribute to residents to help alert them to the problem, and urges anyone spotting one of the pests to report it.

“If you see one, you know there’s more there,” he said.

According to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, adult beetles are “¾ to 1¼ inches long, with a jet black body and mottled white spots on the back. The long antennae are 1½ to 2½ times the body length, with distinctive black and white bands on each segment. The feet have a bluish tinge.” Signs of an infestation include oval to round pits—egg-laying sites—in the bark of a tree, often oozing sap, an accumulation of coarse sawdust around the base of infected trees, and round holes about 3/8 inch in size or larger on the trunk and branches (exit holes made by adults as they emerge from the tree).

The USDA says Asian long-horned beetle infestations have “the potential to destroy America’s hardwood trees, including maples, ashes, willows, and elms.”

Aside from the obvious threats to the landscape and the lumber and maple sugar industries, NASA scientists have found that insect outbreaks can affect carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. Presenting their findings to the American Geophysical Union’s meeting in San Francisco last fall, NASA scientists said, “Tree-planting and insect control could greatly affect Earth’s greenhouse gases—those gases in the atmosphere that warm the planet.”

The Mass. Dept. of Agricultural Resources and the UMass Extension Agriculture and Landscape Program are collaborating on the Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project, which provides people with a way to report sightings. The city of Worcester has on the home page of its website information on how to report sightings, as well as more information about the beetle. (Visit www.ci.worcester.ma.us.)

Burns invites anyone looking for more information on the beetles to call him at 978-456-8349.