# Long horn eucalyptus beetle



## beastmaster (Mar 18, 2010)

The weather has started warming up some out here, along with the nice weather the bugs start flying. Does anyone know when it becomes too late to do eucalyptus trees in areas with long horn beetle infestations. 
Like pine bark beetles, an open trimming cut is like a dinner bell to these ugly ass bugs. We were suppose to do this large euc on a historical site but the weather has changed dramatically and now were not 100 percent sure what to do. This tree was money in the bank But this is a high visibility and much loved tree in this area. My gut says it's probably to late. Any feed back or education would be appreciated. Thanks a lot. Beast


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## mikewhite85 (Mar 18, 2010)

Yeah, it is wicked HOT out now! I just removed a couple eucs today a bit north of you. I would like to know the answer to your question as well!

Jomoco, any thoughts?


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## beastmaster (Mar 18, 2010)

OK, in answer to my own question. I found a city ordnance from Lake forest saying no cutting trimming or removal of eucalyptus is aloud from April 1st to Oct 31st. This is due to the life cycle of the longhorned beetle. 
But their on the coast and it stays a little cooler there then here in the Inland Empire so I wonder if it applies here also. Back to square one.


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## jomoco (Mar 18, 2010)

If it's a prized tree I'd chill out till December and play it safe Beast.

Deadwooding only might work though?

What sub-species again?

jomoco


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## beastmaster (Mar 20, 2010)

It is a prize tree and I think I already knew the answer. I was just hoping maybe they didn't come out or fly tell june or something, but I'm sure this weather will wake them up. In this same area some company did three big stone pine last summer. All three are dead now. From spectacular to eyesore in less then a year. I'm assuming the pine beetle got them. wouldn't want something like that on my conscious.


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## mikewhite85 (Mar 20, 2010)

How do the pine beetles respond to Canary Island Pines? I've got a couple to do next week.

What are the best resources to learn about Socal bugs and pruning schedules?


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## jomoco (Mar 20, 2010)

Bark beetle reproduction cycles vary according to sub-species of the beetle itself, and the temperature of it's environment.

The pine bark beetle can have multiple generations in a single year. Depending on species and temperature, the bark beetle can have a life cycle that lasts from 25 days to 16 weeks, producing as many as six generations in one year's time. 

Making SoCal extremely iffy right about now until the end of November.

Canary Island pines are not the first choice of hosts for the Ipps beetle, but they can be killed by them if seriously stressed by over pruning.

Keep your pruning on them to a minimum, and you should be okay for another month or so.

CDF is the best source of Ipps beetle info in my opinion Mike.

jomoco


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## jefflovstrom (Mar 20, 2010)

Jon just saved me from alot of typing.
Jeff


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## ForTheArborist (Mar 21, 2010)

Does the black sealer in the spray cans work for this problem? I heard from a person that was cruising Home Depot a while back that it doesn't do any good.


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## beastmaster (Mar 24, 2010)

No, I pretty sure they proved that it does more harm then good. A practice left over from the dark ages of aborculture.


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## mikewhite85 (Mar 24, 2010)

jomoco said:


> Bark beetle reproduction cycles vary according to sub-species of the beetle itself, and the temperature of it's environment.
> 
> The pine bark beetle can have multiple generations in a single year. Depending on species and temperature, the bark beetle can have a life cycle that lasts from 25 days to 16 weeks, producing as many as six generations in one year's time.
> 
> ...



Thanks. Maybe I am way out of the loop but what is CDF?

I have been working on a large property in my spare time the past several weeks removing dead eucs that appear to have been killed by what I am assuming is the Longhorn Eucalyptus Beetle. Attached are pics of one of the perpetrators himself (or herself?) and the damage to the tree. You can see how they burrowed not only underneath the bark but deep into the wood as well. 

Could you please give me confirmation whether or not this is the aforementioned villain or is it another variety of beetle?

Also, I have about 2 unsplit cords of this stacked within a few feet of my stucco house and a large liquidambar. Do these beetle pose any threat or does their diet consist of solely eucs?


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## jomoco (Mar 24, 2010)

Can't tell what your first pic is Mike, it's not an adult LH euc beetle, and is the wrong color for the larvae worm, unless it's dead and decomposing.

Your second pic is most definitely beetle infested euc, and can indeed spread the bug about if moved. But if you stack that wood on top of plastic bisqueen and seal it during a few hot summer months, it will cook every bug in it if done methodically, leaving either you or your customers with bug free firewood.

An adult longhorn euc beetle is a big bug, up to 2-3 inches long. And if you pull their longhorn antennae apart just right, they'll scream a very highpitched falsetto for you.

http://cisr.ucr.edu/eucalyptus_longhorned_borer.html

CDF= California Department of Forestry

jomoco


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## jefflovstrom (Mar 24, 2010)

jomoco said:


> Can't tell what your first pic is Mike, it's not an adult LH euc beetle, and is the wrong color for the larvae worm, unless it's dead and decomposing.
> 
> Your second pic is most definitely beetle infested euc, and can indeed spread the bug about if moved. But if you stack that wood on top of plastic bisqueen and seal it during a few hot summer months, it will cook every bug in it if done methodically, leaving either you or your customers with bug free firewood.
> 
> ...



Any they ####ing hurt when they bite!
Jeff


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## mikewhite85 (Mar 25, 2010)

jomoco said:


> Can't tell what your first pic is Mike, it's not an adult LH euc beetle, and is the wrong color for the larvae worm, unless it's dead and decomposing.
> 
> Your second pic is most definitely beetle infested euc, and can indeed spread the bug about if moved. But if you stack that wood on top of plastic bisqueen and seal it during a few hot summer months, it will cook every bug in it if done methodically, leaving either you or your customers with bug free firewood.
> 
> ...



Wow, the picture on the website looks EXACTLY like the wood I cut up though I did not see any beetles that looked like the euc beetle picture. The trees died several years ago so I assume the progeny of the original euc beetles have either migrated to adjacent trees or somehow died out. There are several varieties of eucs (and one huge one that has to be 150' and 7' DBH) and big beautiful oaks on the 11 acre property, right in the middle of the San Fernando Valley. It is a sweet gig. They pay me hourly to climb and fell trees while their caretaker gets rid of the debris with a tractor. The HO is retired and lets me peck away at the job when I have the time- and it's only 10 mins away from home. 

I guess the insect in my pic must have been something else that came after the initial destruction. They are all over the firewood. 

Also, are all varieties of eucalyptus as susceptible to the LH euc beetle? It seems that the ones with the thicker, looser bark would be more prone to infestation than the smooth, white, cream colored eucs. Sorry I don't know the species names!

Thanks again for the advice.


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## beastmaster (Mar 26, 2010)

Some species of eucalyptus are more prone to attack then others. Stressed trees are of course more likely to be attacked and killed then vigorous healthy trees.
In Australia The longhorn beetle isn't much of a pest and rarely kills eucs. I guess its kept under control by natural predators who feed on it through all its life cycles.
A wasp was introduced locally that feed on the larva(it laid its eggs in them) and that really wipe them out for a while, but there's a sub species thats isn't affected by the wasp vary much and their making new head ways.
What i found really interesting is a study being done with pine bark beetles, they use their own sounds(they have a large vocabulary)but alter it some and play it back to them. They go crazy massacring each other. 
By the way CDF is Calif. dept. of forestry. I learned trees working for them on the bark beetle program many years ago. Beastmaster


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## jefflovstrom (Mar 26, 2010)

I worked on the Bark Beetle Project for Phillips and Jordan with Cal-Edison in 2003 in Arrowhead. Cool job!
Jeff


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## MCW (Mar 28, 2010)

beastmaster said:


> Some species of eucalyptus are more prone to attack then others. Stressed trees are of course more likely to be attacked and killed then vigorous healthy trees.
> In Australia The longhorn beetle isn't much of a pest and rarely kills eucs. I guess its kept under control by natural predators who feed on it through all its life cycles.



You are mostly correct regarding stressed trees and species however Longicorn Beetles (thats what they're called in Australia - somehow the US know them as Long Horn Beetles?) are a problem here too, particularly after the drought that most of Southern Australia has experienced. Right now you can drive around my area and tell which eucalypts are affected as they generally look unhealthy and are suffering limb dieback. You'll always find the associated Longicorn /Beetles larvae have entered the tree in the crutch where limbs meet the trunk or in damaged areas. I have two trees that I need to remove at my parent's house as we speak because of Longicorn damage. They are still "just" alive but likely to fall over any second due to the damage that has been caused to the trunk.
No systemic insecticides that I am aware of are effective against pests such as these and timing is difficult with other insecticides (I have been involved with trial work attempting to control these pests in Persimmons - unsuccessfully I might add as the infestation in the trial area was too far advanced  Every single tree had massive amounts of frass in it's crutch - sounds painful  ). Have attached a couple of .pdf files for those that are interested.


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## beastmaster (Mar 28, 2010)

I not sure if were talking about the same beetle. Our import is the Phoracantha semipunctata F. and Phorocantha recurva, ,they seem to only attack eucalyptus. ( http://cisr.ucr.edu/eucalyptus_longhorned_borer.html ) There seem to be a lot of long horned beetles in the Cerambycidae family. Please correct me if I'm wrong, you are in the land down under. They are in your back yard sort of speak. I get most of my info on the internet. 
It would be a economic disaster I think if they started attacking other high value trees here such as fruit trees. I find it interesting how through out the world climate change is affecting things in subtle(and not so subtle ways)ways.
I am vary interested in this pest and appreciate any and all information Thanks. Beast 
Note:I opened the second PDF and there they are, that's our Phoracantha semipunctata. The first PDR was mostly about the Acalolepta mixtus a species we Thankfully don't have yet. 
I like hearing from you Aussies about the impact this bug is having. Kind of gives us in the U.S. a heads up of whats to come.


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## jomoco (Mar 28, 2010)

There are literally millions of dead red gum eucs in SoCal right now.

These once healthy and robust eucs were hit hard by three separate insects.

First about 15 years ago it was the eucalyptus longhorn borer or ELHB.

Then about 8 years ago the Lerp Psyllid.

And for the last 2-3 years, it's the bloody Tortoise Shell Beetle eating the leaves right off what's left of these poor beaten down redgums!

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74104.html

1.......2.......3..........you're out!

Rough days for certain eucs in SoCal of late.

jomoco


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## beastmaster (Mar 28, 2010)

jomoco said:


> And for the last 2-3 years, it's the bloody Tortoise Shell Beetle eating the leaves right off what's left of these poor beaten down redgums!
> 
> http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74104.html
> 
> ...



Yeah those tortoise shell beetles seem to be infested in every Euc I get in. Can change the whole appearance of a tree.


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## jefflovstrom (Mar 28, 2010)

jomoco said:


> There are literally millions of dead red gum eucs in SoCal right now.
> 
> These once healthy and robust eucs were hit hard by three separate insects.
> 
> ...



Yup! Until we get the natural predators of these beasts imported from down under!
Jeff


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## jomoco (Mar 28, 2010)

The insect world is fascinating and very sci-fi, in that you can have a beautiful benign ladybug(Dr. Jekyll) tooling about in one tree, looking prim and proper, and in the next tree an ugly mishapen tortoise shell beetle(Mr. Hyde) actually running up your arm and biting you in the neck!


And it hurts!

jomoco


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## jefflovstrom (Mar 28, 2010)

You funny and witty bastard! I got it! 
Jeff, my sunburned head is on fire!


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## MCW (Mar 29, 2010)

beastmaster said:


> It would be a economic disaster I think if they started attacking other high value trees here such as fruit trees. I find it interesting how through out the world climate change is affecting things in subtle(and not so subtle ways)ways.
> I am vary interested in this pest and appreciate any and all information Thanks. Beast
> Note:I opened the second PDF and there they are, that's our Phoracantha semipunctata. The first PDR was mostly about the Acalolepta mixtus a species we Thankfully don't have yet.
> I like hearing from you Aussies about the impact this bug is having. Kind of gives us in the U.S. a heads up of whats to come.



No worries mate. I always enjoy the Northern Hemisphere perspective too. Basically healthy trees here are doing fine. The biggest problem in my area is drought and associated water restrictions, meaning you can actually get fined for watering your lawn and trees although these restrictions have eased somewhat. Unfortunately the stressed eucs are the ones that have been copping a pasting both natural and domestic. If I remember I'll post some pics of the trees at my parent's house. It's like they've been hit with a shotgun loaded with buckshot. The larvae have gone deep into the heartwood too making these trees quite dangerous.



jomoco said:


> Then about 8 years ago the Lerp Psyllid.
> 
> And for the last 2-3 years, it's the bloody Tortoise Shell Beetle eating the leaves right off what's left of these poor beaten down redgums!
> 
> jomoco



Good old Lerps. You can actually eat their sugary protective coating  Tastes like crap though when I've tried them 
I've never heard of the Tortoise Shell Beetle. They sound nasty.



jefflovstrom said:


> Yup! Until we get the natural predators of these beasts imported from down under!
> Jeff



Good luck unfortunately. The main area where Longicorn Beetles are taken seriously is in forestry. Others may know better but timed aerial insecticide applications probably negate the need to investigate biological control. I doubt much work has been done on biological control of these beetles but could be wrong. Unfortunately most of the damage is being done (as far as I know) to both naturally occurring trees and domestic trees.


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## mikewhite85 (Apr 8, 2010)

I saw this in a Canary Island Pine today... The tree seemed pretty healthy itself but I did find a number of small burrows about halfway up the tree. I could tell that some of these has translucent eggs inside. Are these bark beetles? What can be done about them?


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## mikewhite85 (Apr 8, 2010)

mikewhite85 said:


> I saw this in a Canary Island Pine today... The tree seemed pretty healthy itself but I did find a number of small burrows about halfway up the tree. I could tell that some of these has translucent eggs inside. Are these bark beetles? What can be done about them?



woops. here is the picture


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## MCW (Apr 8, 2010)

Have attached some of the associated tree damage and tree dieback that is being seen in my area of Australia due to Longicorn attack.

Images below are of a Eucalypt known as the Tuart. This is on my in-law's farm and I have already had to drop a couple of these trees. The remaining two will have to go soon as well.























And at my parent's house on a couple of unknown Eucalypt species...


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## MCW (Apr 8, 2010)

And images of the entry points of where these bastards are getting in. Always where limbs join the main trunk, in pre existing damage, or in species that have rough/cracked bark (like the Tuarts above)...














And some close ups of the Tuart trees. Note the frass and tunnelling under the bark (sorry about image quality as all photos were taken on my phone)...


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## beastmaster (Apr 8, 2010)

mikewhite85 said:


> I saw this in a Canary Island Pine today... The tree seemed pretty healthy itself but I did find a number of small burrows about halfway up the tree. I could tell that some of these has translucent eggs inside. Are these bark beetles? What can be done about them?



Mike I don't think thats bark beetles. It kind of looks like woodpeckers. Of course they are eating something in the trees. When the beetle enters the tree the tree trys to push them out with sap. You have pitch tubes. 
After the beetle enters a tree and lays its eggs ,they go through two stages (pupa and larva) then eat their way out as adults after laying more eggs.. These exit hole are pretty small but you can see them if you look closely.


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## mikewhite85 (Apr 8, 2010)

Thanks, Beast. I am glad to hear that.

So you think what appeared to be translucent eggs were actually small beads of sap? I will ask my client if he has heard any wood peckers up there.


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## beastmaster (Apr 8, 2010)

Those woodpeckers were eating something in that tree, possibly could be beetles. Canary island pine are resistant to bark beetle attract more then most pines, with that being said, were seeing more and more canaries dieing from beetles. 
In the last several years two new beetles have been found in our area(So.Calif.) The Mediterranean and the red haired beetle and they attack Canary islands pine along with stone pines and Aleppo pines with lots of vigor.
Close inspection of pines starting from the root flair on up to the top, looking for pitch tubes, frass( fine sawdust),exit holes(cutting into the bark with an axe can help you see the tiny pin holes) and sap dripping down from branch collars are signs to look for.
If a tree is infested even if it looks healthy I think its best to remove it(not always a popular choice) to save surrounding trees. Handling of infected wood its important to follow guidelines recommended by CDF.( You often see a Bunch of dead pines near wood yards)
The most important defense against beetles is to keep the trees healthy with deep watering during the hottest months and not to make any cuts on them tell the weather cools way down in winter. Take care.


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## beastmaster (Apr 8, 2010)

Those woodpeckers were eating something in that tree, possibly could be beetles. Canary island pine are resistant to bark beetle attract more then most pines, with that being said, were seeing more and more canaries dieing from beetles. 
In the last several years two new beetles have been found in our area(So.Calif.) The Mediterranean and the red haired beetle and they attack Canary islands pine along with stone pines and Aleppo pines with lots of vigor.
Close inspection of pines starting from the root flair on up to the top, looking for pitch tubes, frass( fine sawdust),exit holes(cutting into the bark with an axe can help you see the tiny pin holes) and sap dripping down from branch collars are signs to look for.
If a tree is infested even if it looks healthy I think its best to remove it(not always a popular choice) to save surrounding trees. Handling of infected wood its important to follow guidelines recommended by CDF.( You often see a Bunch of dead pines near wood yards)
The most important defense against beetles is to keep the trees healthy with deep watering during the hottest months and not to make any cuts on them tell the weather cools way down in winter. Take care.


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