Aside from being able to fly away from predators, asian long-horned beetles do not have any documented anti-predator adaptions.
Known Predators:
Adult Anoplophora glabripennis are between 20 and 35 mm long, and 7 and 12 mm wide. Their bodies are glossy black with approximately 20 white spots on each wing cover. The antennae of male beetles are 1.5 times as long as their bodies, and the antennae of female beetles are 1.3 times as long as their bodies. The antennae of both sexes are striped black and white. The upper sections of the legs of the adults are whitish-blue. Anoplophora glabripennis can be distinguished from related species by the markings on the wing covers and the pattern of the antennae.
Larvae can reach to 50 mm in length. They are elongated and cylindrical in shape, pale in color and have a varied texture on the underside.
Range length: 20 to 35 mm.
Other Physical Features: ectothermic ; heterothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: sexes shaped differently
In the wild, Asian Long-Horned Beetles require between one to three years to reach maturity. The adult lifespan is about 50 days for males and 66 days for females. The lifespan of A. glabripennis in captivity is not known.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 55-66 days.
Asian long-horned beetles inhabit areas with hardwood (warehouses) and hardwood forests. They are found terrestrially throughout temperate zones of Eastern Asia and parts of the United States living in various species of hardwood trees.
Habitat Regions: temperate ; terrestrial
Terrestrial Biomes: forest
Other Habitat Features: urban ; suburban ; agricultural
Anoplophora glabripennis are indigenous to China and Korea. Between 1994 and 1996 they were introduced to the greater areas of New York and Chicago through commercial trade. Today, these beetles are found throughout warehouses in Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Introduced ); palearctic (Introduced , Native )
Anoplophora glabripennis is also known as Anoplophora nobilis.
Communication Channels: visual ; chemical
Other Communication Modes: pheromones
Perception Channels: visual
There are currently no measures being taken to conserve this species.
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
Anoplophora glabripennis require between one and two years to completely develop from an egg to an adult. After mating in late summer, the females chew grooves in the bark of the host tree and lay a single egg in each groove. They then secrete a substance that hardens over and protects the egg. After about eleven days, the larvae hatch and begin to eat their way deeper into the tree. Larvae spend the winter feeding on the heartwood of the tree. Larvae then hollow out a chamber and pupate for 13-24 days, tunneling their way out of the tree as adults.
Development - Life Cycle: metamorphosis
The economic effects of asian long-horned beetles in their native environment are not documented. In the United States, A. glabripennis have the potential to significantly impact industries such as maple syrup, timber, and nursery. Every tree that is found to have been infested by beetles must be destroyed in order to prevent the further spread of A. glabripennis. As of the summer of 2000, more than 4,000 trees were removed in New York, and another 1,400 were destroyed in the Chicago area. This resulted in total costs of more than $25 million dollars for both cities. It has been estimated that if the A. glabripennis infestation is not curbed in the United States, it could result in a total national cost of $669 billion. The beetle has already had an impact on the shipping industry. All cargo leaving China and Hong Kong in wooden pallets must undergo inspections before exiting the port, which increases the price of shipping. Wooden pallets were the method by which Asian Long-Horned Beetles entered the United States.
Negative Impacts: crop pest
Econimic benefits derived from asian long-horned beetles have not yet been discovered.
Asian long-horned beetles are detrimental to any ecosystem they inhabit. In China, approximately 40% of poplar plantations have been damaged, meaning the wood is good only for packing material. In the Ningxia Province of China, more than 50 million trees were destroyed over a three-year period because of the beetles. These beetles have the ability to significantly alter the composition of North American hardwood forests. It is estimated that between nearly one-third of all trees would have to be destroyed in the United States if A. glabripennis were to spread throughout the country. The potential for widespread distribution in North America and the attack of a wide range of host trees is also very possible.
Ecosystem Impact: biodegradation ; parasite
Species Used as Host:
Adult Anoplophora glabripennis are herbivorous feeding on leaves, twigs, and other plant matter. In their native habitat juvenile A. glabripennis feed on the healthy bark, phloem, and xylem of more than 24 species of hardwood trees, particulary species of poplar. In the United States, the beetles feed on birch, chestnut, green ash, maple, and a variety of other trees.
Plant Foods: wood, bark, or stems; sap or other plant fluids
Primary Diet: herbivore (Lignivore, Eats sap or other plant foods)
Male beetles participate in mate guarding, often staying for hours after copulation to prevent the female from mating again with other males. Females may mate with a single male multiple times or with multiple males.
Mating System: polyandrous
Adult asian long-horned beetles are capable of mating as soon as they emerge from the host tree. Mating takes place on the branches and trunks of host trees between 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM. The female beetle lays an average of 32 eggs, one at a time, over an 11 day period. The eggs hatch in another 11 days. Over their lifetime, females produce between 30 and 80 eggs.
Range number of offspring: 30 to 80.
Key Reproductive Features: sexual ; fertilization (Internal ); oviparous
Parental Investment: no parental involvement
The Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) is a wood-boring beetle believed to have been introduced into the U.S. on wood pallets and wood packing material in cargo shipments from Asia (the beetle’s native range includes China and Korea). Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) larvae bore through wood of a wide variety of hardwood species, most notibly maples, elm, horsechestnut, willow, sycamore and birch. ALB boring phsycially weakens the trees and disrupts sap flow. Branches with boring damage are more likely to break off, creating a public saftey hazard. Trees will eventually be killed by ALB boring damage.
ALB was first discovered in the US in 1996 on several hardwood trees in Brooklyn, NY. Additional infestations were found in Long Island, Manhattan and Queens. In 1998, the beetle was discovered in Chicago, IL. Asian Longhorned beetles were later found in Jersey City, NJ, in 2002 and in Middlesex and Union counties, NJ, in 2004. In 2007 the insect’s NYC range was found to extend to Staten Island and Prall’s Island in the Hudson River. To our north, the beetle was discovered in Toronto, Canada, in 2003. In 2008, a large number of Asian longhorned beetles were discovered in and around Worcester, MA in urban and rural forests. In 2011, ALB was found in Tate Township Ohio.
Biology
Asian longhorned beetle adults can reach 1½ inch in length with very long antennae (reaching up to twice the length of the insect’s body). The beetle is shiny black with small, irregular white markings on its body and antennae. Adult Asian longhorned beetles are active during the summer and early-autumn months. After mating, females deposit their eggs in depressions chewed into the bark of hardwood trees (females can lay 35 to 90 eggs in a season). After hatching (typically 10-15 days), beetle larvae feed by tunneling under the tree bark into the cambium (fresh sapwood) for several weeks. The larvae then tunnel into the xylem (heartwood) were they feed through the winter, forming galleries in the trunk and branches of infested trees. Adult beetles chew their way out through round holes approximately 3/8 inch in diameter, emerging from June through October (presence of the adult emergence can often be detected from sawdust around and beneath these holes, and by sap oozing from the holes).
Hosts
Asian longhorned beetles prefer such hardwood trees as: red maple (Acer rubrum), sugar maple (Acer saccharum), boxelder (Acer negundo), Norway maple (Acer plantanoindes), sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus), silver maple (Acer saccharinum), horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), willows (Salix spp.), and American elm (Ulmus Americana). They will also attack birches (Betula spp.) and sycamores (Platanus spp.).
Impacts
Asian longhorned beetle gallery development and exit holes weaken the integrity of infested trees and can eventually result in death of severely infested trees. It is theorized that if the beetle spreads beyond its current North American range, millions of acres of hardwoods could be killed, potentially causing more damage than the combined impact of Dutch elm disease, chestnut blight, and gypsy moths. National and State forests, parks,and private backyards could be impacted, as could such forest dependent industries as lumber, maple syrup, house and furniture manufacturing, and commercial horticulture nursery stock.
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Adult beetles are attracted to volatile organic compounds produced by preferred host tree species. Both sexes are attracted to a volatile released by female A. glabripennis, and males attempt to copulate after contacting a sex pheromone on the female cuticle. (Hu et al. 2009)
The Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) is native to eastern China, Japan, and Korea. However, it has now been accidentally introduced to the United States, where it was first discovered in 1996, as well as Canada and several countries in Europe, including Austria, France, Germany, and Italy. Individuals have been intercepted in warehouses across the United States. Outbreaks of this beetle pose a severe threat to even perfectly healthy trees in both forests and urban and suburban landscapes. A closely related species, A. chinensis, is considered one of the most destructive longhorned beetles in the world (and the longhorned beetles in general are among the most economically important pests of hardwood trees). Anoplophora glabripennis attacks a variety of tree species, including maples (Acer), willows (Salix), poplars (Populus), birches (Betula), elms (Ulmus), and horse chestnuts (Aesculus), among others. Early instar larvae feed beneath the bark of host trees, destroying the cambial tissue; late instar larvae weaken trees by feeding in both sapwood and heartwood, where numerous larval tunnels often result in tree breakage and death. Larvae bore into the main trunk, branches, and exposed roots of both young and old trees. This beetle is believed to have spread out of Asia in solid wood packaging material. (Cavey et al. 1998; Nowak et al. 2001 and references therein; Smith et al. 2001; Hu et al. 2009)
Although individuals do not typically disperse very far, some may travel as far as a kilometer or two in a season in search of new host trees (Hu et al. 2009).
Cavey et al. (1998) discuss the discrimination of A. glabripennis larvae from those of other species with which they could possibly be confused in North America.
Standard practice to control A. glabripennis in China is to spray insecticides in tree canopies. Wherever it is discovered outside its native range, infested trees are removed and destroyed. In North America, largely as a preventative measure, systemic insecticides are injected into trees.
Entomopathogenic fungi have been developed for the control of A. glabripennis, and entomopathogenic nematodes, coleopteran and hymenopteran parasitoids and predatory woodpeckers have been investigated as biocontrol agents. Ecological control of A. glabripennis in China involves planting mixtures of preferred and nonpreferred tree species, and this practice can successfully prevent outbreaks. (Hu et al. 2009)
Anoplophora glabripennis outbreaks began in China in the 1980s following major reforestation programs that used A. glabripennis-susceptible tree species (Haack et al. 2010). Nowak et al. (2001) investigated the potential maximum impact of A. glabripennis on urban trees in the United States. They predicted that this beetle could cause a loss of about a third of urban trees in the conterminous United States--more than a billion trees--with a compensatory value of nearly three quarters of a trillion dollars.
Based on their analyses of ecological parameters in the native range of A. glabripennis, Peterson et al. (2004) predict that the greatest risk of establishment in North America is in the eastern United States, where abundant appropriate habitat lies close to major shipping ports, especially in the region just south of the Great Lakes.
The Asian long-horned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis), also known as the starry sky, sky beetle, or ALB, is native to the Korean Peninsula, northern and southern China, and disputably in northern Japan.[1] This species has now been accidentally introduced into the eastern United States, where it was first discovered in 1996, as well as Canada, and several countries in Europe, including Austria, France, Germany, Italy and UK.
Common names for A. glabripennis in Asia are the starry sky beetle, basicosta white-spotted longicorn beetle, or smooth shoulder-longicorn, and it is called the Asian long-horned beetle (ALB) in North America.[2]
Adults are very large insects with bodies ranging from 1.7 to 3.9 cm (0.67 to 1.54 in) in length and antennae which can be as long as 4 cm (1.6 in) or 1.5–2 times longer than the body of the insect.[2] They are shiny black with about 20 white spots on each wing cover and long antennae conspicuously banded black and white. These beetles can fly, but generally only for short distances, which is a common limitation for Cerambycidae of their size and weight. The upper sections of the legs of the adults are whitish-blue. A. glabripennis can be distinguished from related species by the markings on the wing covers and the pattern of the antennae.[2]
The Asian long-horned beetle is native to eastern Asia, primarily in eastern China and Korea. This species was known from Japan in the mid-1800s,[3] but may or may not be native there. It is invasive outside its native range.[2]
In its native range, A. glabripennis primarily infests plants like maple, poplar, willow, and elm trees. In the United States, A. glabripennis has completed development on species of these genera and also Aesculus, Albizia, birch, katsura, ash, planes, and Sorbus. In Canada, complete development has been confirmed only on maple, birch, poplar, and willow, although oviposition has occurred on other tree genera. Maple is the most commonly infested tree genus in North America, followed by elm and willow. In Europe, complete development has been recorded on maple, Aesculus, alder, birch, hornbeam, beech, ash, planes, poplar, Prunus, willow, and Sorbus. The top five host genera infested in Europe, in decreasing order, are maple, birch, willow, Aesculus, and poplar. Not all poplar species are equally susceptible to attack.[4] Other economically important trees attacked include apple (Malus domestica), mulberry (Morus alba), stone fruits (Prunus spp.), pear (Pyrus spp.), roses (Rosa spp.), and black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia).[5]
In North America, established populations were first discovered in August 1996 in Brooklyn, New York and has since been found in other areas of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Illinois, Ohio, and Ontario in Canada.[6] However, it has also been eradicated from some regions within these states and provinces.[2][7][8][9][10][11] The first confirmed detection in South Carolina was June 4, 2020, at a residence in Hollywood, Charleston County. As a result both Clemson University's State Crop Pest Commission (which regulates crop pests for the state government) and the federal APHIS declared a quarantine.[12][13][14][15][16]
In Europe, established populations have been found in Austria (in Braunau am Inn in 2001),[17] Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom,[2] though the beetle had also been intercepted in areas through inspection of international trade goods such as wood packaging.[2][18][19][20] In January 2021 Austria was declared free of them after 4 years (2 life cycles) of no detections in Gallspach, the last Austrian infestation.[17]
Adult females lay 45–62 eggs in their lifetime by chewing a small pit through the bark of the host tree to the cambium and lay one 5–7 mm (0.20–0.28 in) long egg underneath the bark in each pit. Eggs hatch in 13–54 days depending on temperature. Eggs that have not developed enough, such as those laid in late summer or early fall, will overwinter and hatch the following season.[2]
Larvae are cylindrical and elongate and can be 50 mm (2.0 in) long and 5.4 mm (0.21 in) wide. Larvae first create a feeding gallery in the cambial region, but more mature larvae tunnel to the heartwood as they feed. Larvae go through at least five instars over 1–2 years; which can vary due to host or temperature conditions. Larvae expel frass from their tunnels near the original oviposition site. A larva can consume up to 1,000 cubic cm of wood in its lifetime. Asian long-horned beetle larvae do not pupate before they reach a critical weight, so additional larval instars can occur.[2]
Pupation usually occurs in spring at the end of the larval tunnel in the sapwood, eclosion occurs 12–50 days later, and adults will chew out of the tree approximately one week after eclosion.[2] Adults feed on leaf petioles and can chew through bark on small branches to feed on the vascular cambium.[2] Eggs, larvae or as pupae can overwinter within the tree. In their overwintering phase, pupae are inactive, and development does not occur. They resume their life cycle when temperatures are above 10 °C (50 °F).[2][4]
Upon emergence, adult females can copulate, although an obligatory maturation period is required for feeding after emergence for ovarian maturation. Laboratory studies have estimated the female maturation period lasts 9–15 days.[21] Adult males have mature spermatozoa before emergence, and feeding is necessary only to sustain their normal activity.[22] Adults typically lay eggs on the plant they developed on during immature stages rather than colonizing new plants unless population density is high or the host plant is dead.[2] However, when they do disperse, they can travel up to approximately 2.5 km (1.6 mi) from their host tree in a growing season in search of new hosts, although in a mark-recapture experiment about 98% of adults were recaptured within 1 km (0.62 mi) of their release point.[2][22] Adults will typically infest the crown and main branches first and will begin to infest the trunk as the crown dies.[2] Adult longevity and fecundity are influenced by conditions such as the larval host plant and temperature. Laboratory reared males and females can live up to 202 and 158 days, respectively.[2]
Eggs within pits with the bark removed.
Multiple instars removed from gallery.
Pupa within its pupal chamber with frass.
Adult beetle.
Due to high tree mortality caused by larval feeding outside its native range, A. glabripennis can change both forest and urban ecosystems. In the United States, it can potentially destroy 30.3% of urban trees and cause $669 billion in economic loss. Early detection is used to manage infestations before they can spread.[2]
Tree infestation can be detected by looking for exit holes 3/8 to 3/4 inches in diameter (1–2 cm) often in the larger branches of the crowns of infested trees. Sometimes sap can be seen oozing from the exit holes with coarse sawdust or "frass" in evidence on the ground or lower branches. Dead and dying tree limbs or branches and yellowing leaves when there has been no drought also indicate A. glabripennis infestation. Traps can also be used containing a pheromone and a plant kairomone to attract nearby adults. Some acoustic sensors can also differentiate larval feeding within trees. Dogs can also be trained to detect the smell of frass on trees.[2]
Workers have found and reported infested material in warehouses in CA, FL, IL, IN, MA, MI, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, SC, TX, WA, and WI in the United States, and in the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada.[23] After an aggressive containment program and with the last confirmed sighting in 2007, Canada declared itself free of the beetle on April 5, 2013 and lifted restrictions on the movement of tree materials.[24]
In September 1998, US customs regulations were changed to require wooden packing materials from China be chemically treated or kiln-dried to prevent further infestations of the Asian long-horned beetle from arriving. Pest inspection, new rules, and public awareness are the key steps to prevention of the spread of the Asian long-horned beetle.
Quarantines have been established around infested areas to prevent accidental spread of A. glabripennis by humans. The use of solid wood packing materials for maritime shipping is regulated for adequate treatment methods at certain ports.[25][26]
All infested trees should be removed by certified tree care personnel to ensure that the process is completed properly, and chipped in place, their stumps ground to below the soil level. Insecticides such as imidacloprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran have been used to target adult beetles in canopies or as trunk injections to target larvae. Insecticides within the tree may not translocate evenly, which allows some A. glabripennis to survive treatments. Combined with efficacy concerns, high cost, and non-target effects on other insects, widespread prophylactic treatment of trees in an infestation area concern scientists.[2]
Over 1,550 trees in Chicago have been cut down and destroyed to eradicate A. glabripennis from Chicago. In New York, over 6,000 infested trees resulted in the removal of over 18,000 trees; New Jersey's infestation of over 700 trees led to the removal and destruction of almost 23,000 trees,[27] but infested trees continue to be discovered.[28]
Some resistant trees have been developed that quickly fill oviposition pits with sap or produce callous tissue that encases and kills eggs. Non-host species are typically used to replace removed trees.[2]
Biological control has also been considered in some areas such as China. Fungi, such as Beauveria brongniartii, can increase mortality in larvae and adults while Metarhizium brunneum and Beauveria asiatica can reduce adult survival time. Most parasitoids in the native range of A. glabripennis have a broad host range, and are not suitable as classical biological control agents. Woodpeckers can also be a significant source of mortality. Countries working towards eradicating A. glabripennis typically do not initially utilize biological control.[2]
In areas such as North America where infestations are small, A. glabripennis can potentially be eradicated.[2] As trees are removed or treated, all host trees on public and private property located within an established distance from an infested area are surveyed by trained personnel. Infested areas are re-surveyed at least once per year for 3–5 years after the last beetle or infested tree is found.
A. glabripennis has been eradicated from Islip, Manhattan, and Staten Island in New York, Jersey City in New Jersey, Chicago in Illinois, and Boston in Massachusetts. It was also declared eradicated in Toronto and Vaughan, Ontario, but it was rediscovered there in 2013.[2] In 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared New York City free of the beetle, after a 23-year-long battle.[11] In June 2020, Marie-Claude Bibeau (the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food) and Seamus O'Regan (the Minister of Natural Resources) declared that A. glabripennis had been eradicated in Mississauga and Toronto, the only two areas of known infestation in Canada.[29]
In 2012, the first recorded outbreak of Asian longhorn beetle in the UK was found at Paddock Wood in Kent, near small commercial premises that had imported stone from China. Novel techniques used to control the outbreak included the use of two detection dogs trained in Austria that can smell the beetles in trees. At the end of the first year’s survey, 1,500 trees had been felled and burned from fields and roadsides and 700 from commercial premises and private gardens.[30] The beetle was declared eradicated in 2019.[31]
The Asian long-horned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis), also known as the starry sky, sky beetle, or ALB, is native to the Korean Peninsula, northern and southern China, and disputably in northern Japan. This species has now been accidentally introduced into the eastern United States, where it was first discovered in 1996, as well as Canada, and several countries in Europe, including Austria, France, Germany, Italy and UK.
