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Asian long-horned beetle is back

Oct. 3, 2013, Ottawa - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has confirmed the presence of Asian Long-horned Beetle (ALHB) in an industrial area near Pearson International Airport in Mississauga, Ontario.

The CFIA is working with other federal departments and provincial and municipal governments to survey the area and determine next steps.

Between 2003 and 2007, ALHB was known to exist in the cities of Toronto and Vaughan. A quarantine area was established and control efforts were undertaken. Based on international standards, the pest was considered eradicated from this area in 2013 after not being detected for five years.

This new find is outside of the eradicated area. Based on the CFIA's national plant pest surveillance program, the ALHB has never been detected elsewhere in Canada.

The ALHB can attack several common species of hardwood trees, such as maple. It eventually kills infested trees. It can fly short distances but can also spread through the movement of infested wood.

Residents are advised to check their trees regularly for signs of ALHB. Any sightings of the beetle or signs of related damage should be reported to the CFIA.

Signs of infestation may include perfectly round exit holes (about 3/8 to 1/2 inch in diameter) made by adult beetles when they emerge from trees; pockmarks on tree trunks and branches where female beetles deposit eggs; frass (wood shavings and coarse saw dust) produced by larval feeding and tunneling; early fall coloration of leaves or dead branches, and running sap produced by the tree at the egg laying sites, or in response to larval tunneling.

Additional information is available on the CFIA website at www.inspection.gc.ca/pests.

October 3, 2013  By press release