Southern pine beetle pitch tubes.
IPS ENGRAVER BEETLES, Ips spp.
With the possible exception of the southern pine beetle, no other insects cause as much mortality to southern pine forests as do the three species of Ips engravers. Usually they attack severely weakened trees, lightning-struck trees, or fresh slash left by logging operations. During drought periods they can successfully attack otherwise healthy pines.
Pine showing typical symptoms of Ips attack.
Attacked trees are quickly girdled by the adults as they construct their egg galleries in the inner bark. Death is usually hastened by the introduction of blue-stain fungi which blocks the flow of sap. Small reddish pitch tubes are frequently the first sign of attack, but they are usually absent in trees suffering from drought. Peeling back the bark of an infested tree will reveal typical Y- or H-shaped egg galleries with short larval galleries extending perpendicular to them on either side. Ips beetles are easily recognized by their “scooped out” posteriors which are surrounded by varying numbers of tooth-like projections. It takes only 18-25 days to complete one generation, allowing populations of these beetles to increase very rapidly during favorable conditions.
At present the best control is the speedy removal and utilization of actively infested trees, making sure that the bark and slabs are destroyed.
BLACK TURPENTINE BEETLE, Dendroctonus terebrans (Oliv.)
The black turpentine beetle is found from New Hampshire south to Florida, and from West Virginia to east Texas. It is a particularly serious pest in the Gulf States where recent outbreaks have killed large acreages of timber. Attacks have been observed on all pines native to the Southeast, and also on red spruce.
