Invasive tree beetle detected in Santa Cruz Mountains, raising wildfire concerns
By Felix Cortez
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FELTON, California (KSBW) — A tree boring beetle previously restricted to the southeastern part of the country has now been detected in the western states, including the Felton area in the Santa Cruz mountains, raising concern among firefighters and foresters.
“Over time, it can result in significant mortality of both urban and wildland tree species, so, you know, trees in our parks, but also trees in our wildlands, like our riparian areas,” said Brian Woodward, a researcher with the University of California Cooperative Extension.
Little is known about the invasive beetle called Euwallacea Interjectus, but it joins two other invasive shothole borer beetles already known to exist in California. More beetles, killing more trees, and raising more concern in fire-prone California.
“As we know, wildfires can rapidly spread in areas in the wild or urban interface, wildland-urban interface and the more dead trees around homes, that’s a big concern for us,” said Calfire forester Colin Noyes.
Researchers may never know how the invasive insect ended up in the Felton area, but the focus now is on more research, education, and outreach in hopes of preventing its spread.
“The main thing that we need to make sure at this point in time is that we’re not transporting wood off the site of areas that are infested so that it doesn’t spread to new locations in Santa Cruz county or beyond,” Woodward said.
For now, the invasive insect has only been found in Felton in an area along Zayante Creek south of Graham Hill Road.
If you’d like to learn more about the Euwallacea Interjectus beetle and how to report suspected damage and prevent its spread, contact your local Cooperative Extension forest advisor or the Santa Cruz Department of Agriculture at 831-763-8080.
“There’s some good videos about how to detect and monitor for the shothole beetles, as well as getting a hold of places like the U.S. Cooperative Extension, your local area foresters, and the county AG commissioner, all those resources are available to help out homeowners to see if they have these pests,” Noyes said.
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