Our trees are under attack. There are a host of insects that feast on trees; some
are deadly for them, with no known defense. For many of these bugs, the only solution
is cutting down all infested trees and quarantining the area where they
have been found. Here are some of them.
Bark beetles are devastating
to conifer trees. They are found all over North America and cause a tremendous
amount of damage to them. They kill trees by girdling them so that they can lay
their eggs. The girdling of these trees, whether they're healthy of not, kills
them by halting the flow of sap. These are among the worst pine tree invaders
in the United States.
Gypsy moths are one of the worst hardwood tree
insect pests. They have killed millions of acres of hardwood forest since their
introduction to this country. They hatch in the spring from eggs laid in trees
and can quickly defoliate an entire one. The first time may not kill the tree
but it can if it happens enough times.
Emerald ash borers are an
exotic species of beetle originally from Asia. While the adults will eat small
quantities of foliage, it's the larvae that are the real problem. They feed on
the inner bark of ash trees, girdling them, and preventing the transporting of
water and nutrients through the tree.
Asian
longhorned
beetles are large black and white beetles originally brought
here from Asia. They feed on a wide variety of hardwood trees including chestnuts,
elms, maples and willows. They will chew holes in the bark of a tree and
lay their eggs inside the hole. When the larvae hatch, they bore deep inside
the tree, and feed on both the heartwood and sapwood - which interrupts the food
supply. When these beetles mature, they eat their way out of the tree to go
and find another, and restart the cycle. The activities of the Asian longhorned
beetle kills healthy trees. And they have no natural enemies in the United States,
so they have the potential to kill many trees, if not brought under control.
Tent
Caterpillars are pests that not only can defoliate hardwood
trees but also: build unsightly tents, and wind up all over sidewalks and walkways
where people have to deal with them. When a tree is infested with tent caterpillars,
they will usually defoliate it completely. And while this is not a death
sentence like those handed down by the bark beetle and Asian longhorned beetle,
it does take its toll. A single defoliation is usually not fatal to a healthy
tree, but if done enough times, it can kill a tree.
Wooly Adelgid
is a pest that attacks hemlocks and balsam firs. They are members of the aphid
family that feed on the sap of conifers. They suck sap from these trees at the
point where the needle attaches to the branch. The tree loses these needles and
is weakened by this feeding, which may eventually kill the tree.
There
are a host of other tree damaging pests in North America including the bronze
birch borer, fall webworm, eastern pineshoot borer, locust borer, and the
mountain pine beetle. If you see one of these pests or have trees affected by them,
it's important to take the steps recommended to help fight them.
Stephanie McIntyre and Wendell Bryant are Internet developers. Visit their site at
http://pestcontrolbugfreezone.comArticle Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Stephanie_McIntyre
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