Containing the Emerald Ash Borer –  

Saving the Ash Trees of the North Shore

 Background information from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture

Of all insect species identified by the Agricultural Research Service's Systematic Entomology Laboratory (SEL) since 1999, a beetle that feeds on ash trees represents perhaps the greatest threat to become a major pest.  Ash is a valuable hardwood that provides habitat for wildlife, ornamentals for landscapers, and wood for makers of handles, oars, baseball bats, furniture and baskets.

Since its discovery near Detroit in May 2002, the emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis, has decimated the ash tree population in parts of Michigan and forced quarantines to be imposed there and in parts of Ohio and Ontario.  This beetle is currently known to be responsible for the death or decline of more than 15 million ash trees in a 20-county area around Detroit.

The metallic-green beetle, which feeds beneath the bark of green (Fraxinus pennsylvanica), white (F. americana) and black (F. nigra) ash trees, is indigenous to Asia. It is feared that the borer, which probably entered this country about five years ago in wooden packing material, will cause damage rivaling that caused by the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) and Dutch elm disease. EAB larvae can be transported to new locations while hidden under the bark of firewood.

In the United States and Canada only ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) appear to be affected. Ash trees are widespread in Canada and the United States. All 16 native ash species are probably susceptible to EAB attack. The national urban impact from EAB could exceed $20 billion. Healthy ash trees of any size can be affected.  Chinese scientists report that EAB can also attack trees in the genus Ulmus (elm), Juglans (walnut and butternut), and Pterocarya (wingnut). So far, only ash trees have been infested in North America, even in mixed stands of ash and American elm.

Symptoms

  - Initial thinning or yellowing of the foliage

  -  Lack of new growth shoots

   - Woodpecker injury – woodpeckers strip away small patches of bark, so that they can extract the borers

  - D-shaped emergence holes, about 3 mm in diameter, are probably present in multiple year infestations

   - Meandering larval galleries – s-shaped tunnels – riddle infected trees

Important links:

What’s Happening:

August 22, 2006:             Illinois Department of Agriculture confirms discovery of Emerald Ash Borer in Winnetka (http://www.agr.state.il.us/newsrels/r0901061.html )

July 27, 2006:             Illinois Department of Natural Resources prohibits the use of firewood from quarantined areas within Illinois state parks (http://www.agr.state.il.us/newsrels/r0727062.html )

July 21, 2006:             Emerald Ash Borer found in Evanston (http://www.agr.state.il.us/newsrels/r0721061.html )

July 13, 2006:             Illinois Department of Agriculture releases confirmation of Emerald Ash Borer Infestation in Wilmette.

July 14, 2006:             Upon notification from Wilmette president Christopher Canning, Congressman Kirk joins The Battle of the Beetle.  Congressman Kirk sends a letter to USDA Secretary Johanns, requesting the Department’s support for Wilmette and the surrounding areas, as local authorities implement an Emerald Ash Borer containment plan.

July 17, 2006:             USDA Secretary Johann’s staff contacts Congressman Kirk’s Washington office to coordinate follow-up and future actions.

July 20, 2006:             Congressman Kirk talks to USDA Secretary Johanns, who assures him that the USDA team and its Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS), will supply support and expertise to Illinois and the North Shore as they fight the Emerald Ash Borer.

Related Information:
Letter to USDA Secretary Michael Johanns
CRS Report on the Ash Borer Beetle