麻豆淫院

The presence of the invasive emerald ash borer, EAB, has been confirmed in Jack, Navarro, Somervell, Bell and Rockwall counties. Bell County's confirmation makes it the southernmost confirmed location of the pest in the nation, according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.

The emerald ash borer is a destructive, nonnative, wood鈥恇oring pest that targets all ash tree species. Native to Asia, forest health experts have monitored its movement across the U.S. since 2002. It has spread to more than half of the states and killed millions of ash trees.

The beetle was first detected in Texas in 2016 in Harrison County. The emerald ash borer has since spread to 31 counties statewide, with five new Texas counties confirmed in 2024 and an additional five this year.

"EAB is one of the worst invasive insects to impact North American forests," said Allen Smith, Texas A&M Forest Service regional forest health coordinator. "EAB does not typically fly far distances naturally. Their expansion across the state and the U.S. has been expedited due to human activity, like moving infected firewood and ash tree products across state and county lines."

Detecting movement across the state

Texas A&M Forest Service deploys traps annually, beginning in February, to proactively monitor emerald ash borers. The agency currently has 554 traps throughout Texas.

"Our timing in trapping EAB is important because its emergence is dependent on weather and temperature conditions," Smith said.

Once the presence of EAB is confirmed in a county, the assumes regulatory responsibility, which includes establishing quarantines. The state's mandatory quarantine by the Texas Department of Agriculture restricts the movement of any woody ash material exiting the county or quarantined area.

The Texas Department of Agriculture also regulates sawmills, kiln dry facilities, mulch products, wood packing material, ash nursery stock and all hardwood firewood.

"Because EAB is transported unintentionally on wood products, the quarantine helps slow the beetle's spread by restricting the movement of wood in and out of affected areas," said Demian Gomez, Texas A&M Forest Service regional forest health coordinator. "Texans can proactively prevent the spread of EAB and other pests and diseases by burning firewood where it is bought."

Signs of infestation

All species of ash are susceptible to EAB. Infested ash trees may show few to no symptoms in the early stages.

Emerald ash borer larvae feed in the phloem of branches and trunks, preventing nutrients from being transported from the leaves to the rest of the tree. Tree mortality can occur five to six years after the beetle is introduced.

Symptoms of infestation may include dead branches near the top of a tree, leafy shoots sprouting from the trunk, bark splits exposing S-shaped larval galleries, extensive woodpecker activity, and D-shaped exit holes.

Adult emerald ash borers are dark emerald green, approximately half an inch long, and one-eighth inch wide. They can be seen near ash trees, especially between May and June in Texas, when they are more likely to be active.

Texans can help minimize the spread of EAB by diversifying tree and plant species on their property, following the 10鈥�20鈥�30 rule鈥攑lanting no more than 10% of any one species, 20% of any one genus or 30% of any one family.