Life stages of the black turpentine beetle: adult, callow adult, pupa, larva and eggs.
This is the largest of the southern bark beetles, varying in length from ⅕ to ⅓ of an inch, or about the size of a raisin. They are reddish-brown to black in color. The beetle attacks fresh stumps and living trees by boring through the bark and constructing galleries on the face of the sapwood where eggs are laid. Fifty to 200 eggs are laid in a group. They hatch into white larvae which feed on the inner bark. The beetle may girdle trees when several broods occur at approximately the same height, killing the trees. From 70 to 90 percent of the trees attacked by the beetle die.
After the larvae complete their development, they pupate. Adult beetles emerge and infest more pine trees. The entire life cycle takes from 2½ to 4 months, depending on temperature. In the insect’s southern range there usually are two generations and part of a third each year. In its northern range, the third generation does not develop; consequently the beetle is not a serious pest there.
Weather is probably the most influential factor in regulating the numbers of this insect. During outbreaks the removal or chemical treatment of infested trees helps to keep losses to a minimum.
Close-up of black turpentine beetle pitch tubes.
AMBROSIA BEETLE, Platypus flavicornis (F.)
Ambrosia beetles are represented in the South by several species of the genus Platypus of which only P. flavicornis (F.) is known to attack dead or dying southern pines. P. flavicornis (F.) will secondarily invade other conifers and on some occasions may be found in hardwood trees. It is so abundant in the South that few dying pines, stumps, or logs escape attack. The beetle is found from Texas east to Florida and north to New Jersey.
Adult of the Platypus ambrosia beetle.