Once upon a time about 100 years ago there was a tree that filled in upwards of 25% of the United State's eastern forests. This tree was known as the American chestnut. By 1950 the chestnut was virtually wiped out due to a fungus that came from Japan. Later in the 1950's, the elm tree was greeted with the Dutch elm disease. This disease was traced back to a single log that traveled from New York through Pennsylvania and into Ohio causing a loss of two-thirds of the elm population.

We ask ourselves if it is possible for another epidemic of that magnitude to happen again. Well of course the answer would be yes, but the action is how could we stop it before it becomes that serious. How can we prevent whole ecosystems to fall prey to another foreign pathogen? The Asian longhorn beetle was first identified in 1996 and has been the cause for all of the recent excitement in the eastern United States.

The threat that this introduced insect poses is dramatic. The main species that is affected by the beetle is the maple. The eastern United States is abundantly forested by maples and could see a complete change in its ecosystem if this pest is not controlled. Some food for thought, "800 million trees up and down the east coast are at the mercy of State and Federal officials to prevent the spread of the beetle" (Ridgeway n. pag). The price tag that would follow an epidemic of this proportion would be in the billions of dollars. A loss in the maple would cease the maple sugar industry on the east coast as well as the tourism that comes with the beautiful fall foliage associated with maple trees.

In 1996 the Asian longhorn beetle was discovered in Brooklyn. The damage, thought to be caused by children drilling holes into the trunks of suburban trees was not as simple as the real problem. After a citizen reported a strange beetle to authorities an epidemic had been found. A month later in Amityville, N.Y. a second area had been infested. It was determined that a Brooklyn tree pruning company had spread the beetle into this area. Two years later in a suburb of Chicago, called Ravenswood, was found to be infested by the beetle. The two outbreaks are apparently said not to be related. In all instances quarantines had been set up to prevent the beetle from spreading out of these communities. A hotline made it easy for residents in both areas to call if they had infested trees and for people outside of the area to report any spread of the pest. In April of 1999 an outbreak had occurred in Queens. Where will the next one be?

Scientists say that they have tract the original outbreaks in Brooklyn and Chicago to packaging material containing Chinese goods. Officials from China deny causing the spread of the beetle out of their homeland and into the United States. This has created some tension between the United States and China as far as trade is concerned. "Our intention here is not to disrupt trade, but to lock out an unwanted guest that poses a serious economic and environmental threat" (Glickman 2). "The US has had a "zero tolerance" policy when it comes to pest risks in timber instituted by the United States Department Of Agriculture (USDA)"(Cawthon n. pag). Over the past few years the USDA has not been as active in its own policy. They have, however, set up rules on treating wooden packaging materials as to eradicate pests found in the timber. One accepted method is to use heat treatment, which exposes the wood to extreme heat. One other accepted treatment recognized by the USDA is the use of methyl bromide. Methyl
bromide is considered to be one of the most deadly pesticides and to societies dismay one of the major contributors to the depletion of the ozone layer (Ridgeway n. pag). Only recently has the USDA banned the import of all untreated wood packaging material from China.

Breaking developments in detecting the beetle are being developed. One such method is using pheromones secreted by the beetle in order to attract them. These could be set up in and around import yards/ports. If this attractant is effective the beetle will fly to the smell and actions can be taken.

President Clinton had taken an active role in the terrible threat to the USA's ecosystems by saying, "The Executive Order mobilizes the federal government to defend against these aggressive predators and pests. Led by the Department of the Interior, Agriculture, and Commerce, federal agencies will work together to prevent the introduction of non-native species and control those already here. My fiscal year 2000 budget proposes an additional $29 million to support these efforts, and I urge Congress to join us in protecting our economy and our natural heritage against the threat of non-native species." (Pres. Clinton n. pag)

First identified in New York crawling out of a maple this inch-long insect is black with white spots and antennae that span its body length. Characteristic damage includes entry and exit wounds just smaller than a dime, sometimes you will be able to find sap flowing from the holes and a pile of saw dust at the bases of trees.

Mating occurs in tree tops were you find the male sticking around the female for hours to fend off other suitors. Females will spend about an hour laying one out of 35 eggs. They take the time so that they can gnaw a depression or groove into the inner bark where one egg will be deposited. This continues till all of the eggs have been laid or her 42 day life cycle expires. The egg hatches in and around 11 days. At this point it is called a grub.

The beetle spends most of its life as a pale grub that looks like just about any other ordinary grub. To the trained eye the grub can be identified by varied textures found on the underside of its abdomen. The grub will start out eating the nutrient rich cambium gaining strength and size. After shedding their skin twice the grub then proceeds to bore into the tree and spends its winter in the heartwood. After wintering the grub will start to chew its way out of the tree. Ever increasing in size, the grub is now called a pupa. In this process it starts to become a softer version of a mature adult. When the beetle emerges from the tree it will be an adult ready to complete its life cycle.

It is really scary to think that our forest ecosystems could take another direct hit from an introduced species like the chestnut blight, Dutch elm disease and the gypsy moth. Our landscapes have changed a great deal over the past 100 years starting with the great logging boom to the last invasion of the elm spanworm. My grandfather was telling me all changes that he has seen in his 80 years. Coming from a biology background he was quick to notice these changes that our forests have undergone. After thinking of what he said, I came up with the conclusion that I don't want to see a plague of deforestation. Our ecosystem is entirely too fragile to allow for another widespread attack on one of our great tree species. Drastic measures must be taken to control this new epidemic and it is up to us to combat it.

Bibliography

Ridgeway, James. Foreign Bugs Threaten Already Dwindling Forests, Inter Press Service English News Wire, 12-11-96.

Glickman, Dan. Asian Longhorn Beetle Announcement. (www.usia.gov/regional/ea/uschina/glickman.htm) pg. 2. September 11, 1998.

Cawthon, Raad. Chicago hopes to halt Beetlemania.' The Dallas Morning News, 08-02-1998, pp 12A.