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Emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis (Fairmaire) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), a phbern-feeding beetle native to Asia, has become one of the most destructive forest pests in North America. Since it was first identified in 2002 in southeast Michigan and Windsor, Ontario, dozens of isolated A. planipenni.s populations have been discovered throughout Michigan and Ontario, and in 12 other states and the province of Quebec. We assessed realized A. planipennis dispersal at two discrete outlier sites that originated 1 yr and 3 yr earlier from infested nursery trees. We systematically sampled ash trees within an 800 m radius of the origin of each infestation to locate galleries constructed by the progeny of dispersing A. planipennis adults. Our sampling identified eight trees at the 1 yr site infested with a mean ± SE of 11.6 ± 8.4 A. planipennis larvae and 12 trees at the 3 yr site with 25.8 ± 11.1 larvae per meter squared, Dendroentomological analysis indicated that A. planipennis populations were predominantly undergoing a 2 yr (semivoltine) life cycle at both sites. Colonized trees were found out to 638 and 540 m from the epicenters at the 1 yr and 3 yr sites, respectively. Logistic regression was used to determine whether the likelihood of A. planipennis colonization was affected by wind direction, ash phloem abundance, distance from the epicenter, or land-use type (i.e., wooded, residential, agricultural, or urban). Results show that the probability of A. planipennis colonization was significantly affected by ash phloem abundance and decreased with distance from the epicenter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pine shoot beetle,Tomicus piniperda(L.) (Col., Scolytidae) is an exotic pest of pine,Pinusspp., in North America. It is attracted strongly to host volatiles (±)-α-pinene, (+)-3-carene, andα-terpinolene. Attraction to insect-produced compounds is less clear. Other potential attractants includetrans-verbenol, myrtenol, myrtenal, nonanal andα-pinene oxide. We conducted a series of field experiments to determine if any of these compounds would increase attraction ofT. piniperdatoα-pinene, either individually or in various combinations. None of the individual compounds increased attraction. Although several combinations that includedtrans-verbenol, nonanal, myrtenol, or myrtenal increased attraction, results were variable between experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pine shoot beetle, Tomicus piniperda (L.), is an exotic pest of pines, Pinus spp., that was first found in the United States in 1992. A federal quarantine currently regulates movement of pine Christmas trees and pine nursery stock from infested to uninfested counties. The current national Pine Shoot Beetle Compliance Management Program requires T. piniperda-infested brood material to be disposed of by burning, chipping, or burial. The burial option requires that the infested pine material be buried at a depth of at least 30 cm. We tested this requirement by burying logs with similar levels of infestation at 0, 15, 30, 45, 61 and 76 cm and then monitoring for T. piniperda emergence. Logs were buried at two times during larval development (early and late) and in two soil types (sandy loam and loam). Emergence patterns from the two soil types were similar. Overall, 1,747 T. piniperda adults were collected from the 24 exposed control logs, but only 34 adults from the 120 buried logs, including 24 adults from logs buried at 15 cm, eight adults from 30 cm, one adult from 45 cm, and one adult from 61 cm. In comparing mean emergence density from buried logs with that of exposed logs, 98.6% mortality occurred at 15 cm, 99.5% at 30 cm, and > 99.9% at > or = 45 cm. Mean date of T. piniperda emergence to the soil surface was affected by burial depth and burial date, but not soil type.