Press Releases
Daniel J. Parry (301) 734-3255
Jerry Redding (202) 720-6959
USDA TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETINGS TO ADDRESS INSECTICIDE TREATMENTS TO COMBAT ASIAN LONGHORNED BEETLE
WASHINGTON, March 23, 2001--The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service's Cooperative Asian Longhorned Beetle Project will hold a public
meeting March 29 between 6:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. in the auditorium of the Old Town School of
Folk Music located at 4544 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, Ill. The purpose of this meeting is
to discuss upcoming insecticide treatments to combat Asian longhorned beetle. Presentations by
project officials will be followed by a moderated question and answer period.
Treatments will be completed by project officials and are delivered by injecting the
insecticide imidacloprid into the base of host trees via small capsules. Through the tree's own
circulatory system, the insecticide is dispersed throughout the tree. This process enables the
insecticide to reach Asian longhorned beetle adults and larvae as they feed on small twigs and
beneath the bark of host trees.
Imidacloprid is currently used in store-bought lawn and garden products to kill lawn grubs
and in some domestic pet flea treatments.
The Asian longhorned beetle, native to China, bores into healthy hardwood trees and feeds
on living tree tissue during the larval stage. Later, throughout the summer, adult beetles emerge
from exit holes and briefly feed on the small twigs of host trees. To fight this destructive pest,
agriculture officials removed and destroyed more than 5,000 trees in and around New York City
and more than 1,400 trees in the Chicago area. Tree destruction has been the only method for
controlling this beetle since its initial U.S. discovery in New York in 1996 and in Illinois in 1998.
APHIS officials are optimistic that using imidacloprid will decrease beetle populations and future
tree loss but advise that, if a tree is found to be infested, it will be removed regardless of
treatment. The goal is to eradicate this highly destructive insect from New York and Illinois
before it can establish itself elsewhere.
For more information on the Asian longhorned beetle or imidacloprid, visit the APHIS
website at www.aphis.usda.gov and click on Asian longhorned beetle under "Hot Issues."
For information concerning public meetings or to report an Asian longhorned beetle sighting,
please call (312) 742-3385 (74BEETL).
The Illinois Cooperative Asian Longhorned Beetle Project is comprised of the Illinois
Department of Agriculture, and Chicago Bureau of Streets and Sanitation.
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