Aerial survey of forested land in North America show large paths of dead trees. The trees are supposed to be green. But the invasion of bark beetle has led to the death of trees in large numbers.
A tiny beetle has left the forestland dangerously vulnerable to death.
There are more than 600 species of bark beetles throughout the U.S. And since the bark beetle outbreak began back in 1996, these beetles have affected more than 41.7 million acres of land in the U.S. That’s about the size of the entire state of Florida! Since there are so many different types of bark beetles, it seems there’s a bark beetle out there for nearly every tree type.
Bark beetles survive in trees that are stressed, diseased, or injured; either by human activity or during storms or wildfires. They primarily attack cedar, fir, pine and spruce trees.
Pine bark beetles create tunnels under the bark, and the shape and location of these tunnels can help you identify the species causing the infestation (see inset). These tunnels are on both the inside of the bark and the outside of the sapwood. The presence of these tunnels is a sure sign of infestation.
A Columbia University study calls the bark beetle “one of the world’s most aggressive tree-killing insects,” while the U.S. Department of Agriculture asks, “How can something so small kill something so big?”
Since 2010, an estimated 129 million trees have died just in California’s national forests because of the drought or bark beetles. That means 30 trees have been dying, on average, every minute!
Bark beetle outbreaks expanding in Colorado
By Ryan Lockwood │ January 15, 2019
A band of orange trees reveals the impact of roundheaded pine beetles in a stand of ponderosa pines in Dolores County. Photo: Dan West/Colorado State Forest Service
Bark beetle outbreaks have continued to expand in parts of Colorado, based on a 2018 aerial forest health survey conducted by the Colorado State Forest Service and U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Every year, the agencies work together to monitor forest health conditions on millions of forested acres across the state.
178,000 acres of high-elevation Engelmann spruce were affected statewide in 2018.
Approximately one-third of these affected acres were new, or previously unaffected areas. Primary areas impacted include forestlands in and around Rocky Mountain National Park, and portions of the San Juan Mountains, West Elk Mountains and Sawatch Range.
Over the last 18 years, spruce beetle outbreaks have caused tree mortality on more than 1.8 million acres in Colorado, and approximately 40 percent of the spruce-fir forests in Colorado have now been affected. Blowdown events in Engelmann spruce stands, combined with long-term drought stress, warmer temperatures and extensive amounts of older, densely growing trees, have contributed to this ongoing epidemic.
BARK BEETLE INFESTATION WORST IN OVER 200 YEARS
By Brian Kenety │ July 8th 2018
The Czech Republic’s largely coniferous forests are facing the worst bark beetle infestation in at least 200 years. The lower house of Parliament is due on Tuesday to discuss both emergency and long-term measures to combat the voracious insect, which kills spruce trees.
The amount of spruce wood damaged by bark beetles has risen steadily in the past few years, from 2 million cubic metres of spruce wood in 2015 to more than 5.5 million cubic metres in 2017. Experts are warning that the nation’s forests could be wiped out if the current monoculture forestry format is not unchanged.
Systemic insecticides, meaning those that are implanted or injected through the bark or applied to the soil beneath trees, have not been shown to prevent attack or control populations of bark beetles.
The trees are dying at an alarming rate. What can be an effective solution to prevent this infestation? C Tech
CombirepelTM is available in the form of the masterbatch, which can be incorporated with the polymeric applications like tree guards, pipes, agricultural films, wires, and cables, etc. to keep insects at bay.
The product available in the form of liquid concentrate can be mixed in paints in a predetermined ratio and can be applied topically on the applications.
The product available in the form of lacquer can be used as a topical application and can be applied on the tree trunks to keep the insects at a distance from the trees.
To keep the insects at the bay CombirepelTM pest repellent spray can be sprayed or coated on the tree trunks.
The product is also effective against a multitude of other insects and pests like ash borer, mayflies, thrips, aphids, etc. The repelling mechanism of the product would ward off the bark beetles and other insects that could cause damage. Thus, by using CombirepelTM would effectively ensure that the area around us remain safe and protected from the pests for a long period of time.
Why resort to killing when we can just repel them!?
Contact us at technical.marketing@ctechcorporation.com to keep the pests away.
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