The pine beetle is a member of the family of curculionidae beetles. It is a major pest to pine trees in North America, particularly the ponderosa pine, and has caused several outbreaks in the past.
Size: 5mm
Color: It has a shiny black exoskeleton.
Other Characteristic Features: They are capable of flight and occasionally travel from one tree to another. However, they are not very good at it and generally don’t travel more than 300 ft.
Larvae are yellowish-white, with dark heads. These grubs are legless and the size of a rice grain.
After the larvae fully mature, they begin to pupate.
Females lay eggs incol3 the bark of the host plant by tunneling incol3 and creating galleries.
| Lifespan | 1 year |
| Distribution | North America including, central British Columbia, western North America, and Mexico. |
| Habitat | Moist and dry forests |
| Seasons active | July-August |
| Predators | Woodpeckers and other beetles |
| Host plants | Ponderosa, lodgepole, and limber pines; Scott pines are also attacked on occasion. |
| Diet of adults | Same as the larvae |
After an attack, infested trees will have red resin tubes jutting out of their bark. The color of the tube is important as only red tubes indicate an infestation as they are filled with dust released from the beetles boring. White tubes indicate that they attempted to enter the tree but failed to do so.
Image Source: reddeeradvocate.com, i.pinimg.com, bugwoodcloud.org, invasivespeciescentre.ca
The pine beetle is a member of the family of curculionidae beetles. It is a major pest to pine trees in North America, particularly the ponderosa pine, and has caused several outbreaks in the past.
Size: 5mm
Color: It has a shiny black exoskeleton.
Other Characteristic Features: They are capable of flight and occasionally travel from one tree to another. However, they are not very good at it and generally don’t travel more than 300 ft.
Larvae are yellowish-white, with dark heads. These grubs are legless and the size of a rice grain.
After the larvae fully mature, they begin to pupate.
Females lay eggs incol3 the bark of the host plant by tunneling incol3 and creating galleries.
| Lifespan | 1 year |
| Distribution | North America including, central British Columbia, western North America, and Mexico. |
| Habitat | Moist and dry forests |
| Seasons active | July-August |
| Predators | Woodpeckers and other beetles |
| Host plants | Ponderosa, lodgepole, and limber pines; Scott pines are also attacked on occasion. |
| Diet of adults | Same as the larvae |
After an attack, infested trees will have red resin tubes jutting out of their bark. The color of the tube is important as only red tubes indicate an infestation as they are filled with dust released from the beetles boring. White tubes indicate that they attempted to enter the tree but failed to do so.
Image Source: reddeeradvocate.com, i.pinimg.com, bugwoodcloud.org, invasivespeciescentre.ca
