REYNOLDSBURG – In an effort to detect signs of the Asian Longhorned Beetle, the Ohio Department of
Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin a visual survey in areas surrounding
Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Toledo and Loudonville.
First discovered in the U.S. in 1996, there are currently no known infestations of the Asian Long-horned
Beetle in Ohio.
State inspectors will examine trees from now through March. They will survey 18 host trees per square
mile for the beetle exit holes, and the survey will cover approximately 250 square miles across the
state.
The beetle attacks several tree species including maple, willow, horsechestnut, buckeye and American elm.
While in its larvae stage, the beetle harms trees by tunneling into large branches and the trunk, which
can kill a tree within two to three years. The beetles emerge to mate between June and October.
Infested trees will show three-eighths inch holes in the bark, which are created during the beetles’
emergence. In addition, coarse sawdust may be visible at the tree base or where two branches meet, and
the crown of the tree may appear thin or dying.
Anyone who finds a suspect specimen, should contact the ODA Plant Pest Division at (614) 728-6400 or
notify the local OSU Extension office.