Emerald Ash Borer

[Chuck White]

I was sawing some hemlock yesterday and we were taking a break and one of the guys started peeling the bark off of an old log and there was a handful of "bright green" (metalic looking) bugs under the bark.

The were probably 1/8 inch wide and maybe 3/8 inch long!

Were these Emerald Ash Borers?

Chuck

[SwampDonkey]

First "guess" is no, likely a bark beetle. Although, some wood borer adults feed on bark. It's mostly the borer larva that do the most damage. No pictures?

[Jeff]

From all I have learned, my first answer would also be no.  Did it look like these guys?  I discovered these living under the loose bark of a dead larch and they are the same size as you describe.

[Chuck White]

Nope!
The ones we saw were bright green, almost like painted and polished.

Thanks for the replies.

Chuck

[mrcaptainbob]

The emerald ash borer is certainly a bright and shiny green, but is long and slender. The Japanese beetle is also shiny green, but is short and fat.

Japanese beetle:  http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef451.asp

emerald ash borer:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald_ash_borer

Let us know what 'pets' you have...the beetle is now making itself kown in the area. Although they usually come out around June. The borer is usually out of sight. One of the tell tale signs of the borer is that the holes they drill in the wood are shaped like a 'D'. All others are round.

[Chuck White]

The beetles that I saw were definitely NOT Emerald Ash Borers.

Thanks for your inputs.


Chuck

[wesdor]

Yesterday, my wife saw what she thinks may have been an Emerald Ash Bore.  I followed the link above and she thinks it was something different than either of them.

We don't have any (well there might be some that I don't know about) ash trees on our farm our nearby, but does that keep us safe from EAB? 

I don't want to find them in our back yard, but hiding our heads in the sand is not a good solution.  Any suggestions on how to proceed?

Thanks.

[beenthere]

Send it in for some identification. Maybe have an extension service nearby that will help or point you to an address. Keep it in a bottle, and undamaged if possible.

[wesdor]

good idea to send it in for ID, but I haven't caught any.  Perhaps I need to ask my question more correctly?  Is there some local / state person that I should contact to help with this problem? 

Also, does the EAB attack other tree species?  Anything I can do locally to kill them off if they are here?

Thanks for the thoughts.

[beenthere]

I wouldn't suggest doing anything until you catch one.
But talking to a state/local person without one in hand might get them interested, and suggest a trap for catching one.
Send member Estier a PM and see if she has a suggestion. She likely knows as much about them as anyone. 

[wesdor]

Thanks for the suggestions.  I think we are waging a losing battle, but I still want to fight this thing any way possible.

Thanks again.

[estiers]

As of today in the US, EAB has not been found in any tree species, except those in the genus Fraxinus.

If you do believe you have caught an EAB, go to http://www.emeraldashborer.info/ and click on contact info.  This will bring up a list of contacts for states in and around the infested area.  If you are outside one of those states, I would contact your local extension office or State Department of Agriculture.

[wesdor]

Thanks for the detailed information.  I guess I don't need to send you a PM.

After visiting the EAB information site, it looks as if we should not have EAB in our area.  Maybe it is just a matter of time, but so far I feel good about that.  I'll keep my eyes open for one of the bugs my wife saw and try to catch it.

Your expertise is greatly appreciated.