First Recorded Asian Longhorned Beetle (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) Infestation in the Southern United States

Abstract

The Asian longhorned beetle [Anoplophora glabripennis (Motschulsky), ALB] was found in Hollywood, SC, in May 2020. This infestation is at least 7-yr old and represents the southernmost infestation in North America. A federally regulated invasive forest and tree pest, ALB primarily attacks maples but is known to attack and reproduce in trees in at least 12 different genera. Damage observed in South Carolina is typical of that seen in other ALB infestations, including oviposition sites, splitting bark around larval feeding sites, and round holes made by emerging adults. Copious weeping from oviposition sites was commonly observed in the summer of 2020, and characteristic frass and wood shavings were commonly exuded from attacked trees. Federal and state regulatory officials established a 152 km2 (58.6 mi2) regulated area in October—which the state increased to 188.0 km2 (72.6 mi2) in January—and to date >4,000 trees (98% Acer spp.) infested with ALB have been identified. Several uncertainties regarding ALB’s biology and ecology exist due to this area’s subtropical climate, including impacts to the beetle’s life cycle. Questions also surround potential biological control agents in this area and whether new host trees would be utilized. While the standard eradication strategy of tree removal and chipping is being performed, there are several forested wetlands and areas otherwise inaccessible to typical removal equipment where alternate eradication strategies may need to be developed and deployed. Because this ALB infestation is located within a novel environment, it provides an opportunity to research new strategies that will help improve future detection and eradication efforts.