Another week out in the field for work and I have another group of insects to share with y’all. Bark beetles are often described as being the most destructive group of insect pests that attack coniferous trees. They attack conifers using 3 main methods:

Those that mine just beneath the bark leave characteristic engravings on both the wood and the inner side of the bark. The engravings can be broken down into 3 different types:

Some bark beetles attack perfectly healthy trees and others attack trees that are already weaken or stressed, but their feeding activity rapidly kills the tree. What’s more is that the pine engravers (Ips spp.) also introduce a fungus, blue stain, to the tree. The fungi spread into the xylem and block the water flow. As an aside, what’s kind of cool is that the longhorn beetles in the genus Monochamus also attack these same trees and they transmit a little nematode (microscopic roundworm) to the tree that feeds on blue stain fungi.

Unfortunately there isn’t much that can be done for controlling these little buggers, except for cutting down and removing infested trees. Different pheromone lures, traps, and chemical insecticides have been tried, but thus far they have not been all that successful.

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