Emerald Ash Borer
Agrilus planipennis

Overview
The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is a green metallic beetle native to Northern China and Korea. It is suspected to have first entered North America through shipping materials. First spotted in 2002 near Detroit, Michigan, EAB has since spread into much of Michigan, and parts of Canada, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Research indicates that although adult EAB beetles can feed on non–ash leaves, it appears that the EAB larvae can only survive in ash trees (Fraxinus genus), with all types of ash –native and cultivated– being susceptible.

Lifecycle
Adult beetles begin to emerge in mid-May through August, but are most numerous in late May to early-June with numbers dropping off sharply. Very few can be found in August. Females usually begin laying eggs about 2 weeks after emergence. The eggs hatch in 1-2 weeks, and the larvae crawl into the cambium and phloem under the bark and begin feeding for several weeks. Growing through 4 stages, they feed back and forth in a serpentine fashion, destroying the up-and-down flow of water and nutrients within that area of the tree. Larvae need living tree tissue to feed upon. However, the pupae stage can survive in dead wood (such as firewood). The beetle leaves its excrement

in the channel as it moves through the tree. Most larvae over-winter in the outer bark, and pupation occurs in spring. The new generation of adults will emerge through D-shaped emergence holes in May to begin the cycle again.

Big Concern
The reason this beetle is of such concern is the speed at which it can kill, the speed the beetle

reproduces, the importance of ash in our forest communities, and the value of ash products to our local and national economies. When several larvae are feeding near each other, the whole circumference of the trunk or branch can be girdled, and the tree will die from the top down. Because the root system is not directly affected, the axillary buds begin to sprout as the tree tries to regrow. These new shoots quickly become infected as well. Dead trees dropping limbs at random are an obvious safety concern, and the cost of removing hundreds of dead or dying ash trees can stretch homeowner and municipal budgets to their limits.

Stop the Spread: Don't Move Firewood!
Our ash trees have no immunity from the EAB, and their growth rate is not fast enough to recover from the damage done by the larvae. Scientists have been aggressively researching the beetle, the Fraxinus genus, and possible prevention/treatment options. Because of its short time as an adult beetle, EAB

can only spread on its own about 1/4 to 1/2 mile per year. However, the beetle is spreading at a much faster rate with people inadvertently transporting it in infected wood products and firewood. As a result, the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia have enacted county-level quarantines to prevent the spread of the beetle from infested counties. In addition, the federal government has established quarantines in or around those same states. In general, all ash trees, materials made from raw ash, and firewood of any species are not to be moved out of the quarantined areas, regardless of the origin of the material or firewood. Violation of these quarantines can result in fines of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment. The specifics of these quarantines vary and are subject to change. Please refer to each state's specific quarantine policy.

New EAB infestation sites are found every year. In May 2009, Officials with the (Kentucky) Office of the State Entomologist announced the first findings of EAB in the state. The two separate discoveries were in a private woodlot in Shelby County and in a residential landscape in Jessamine County. The following month, they announced additional Kentucky sites, including the first confirmed finding in northern Kentucky. The first find in Boone County came later that year. Finally in 2012, the first EAB was captured at the Boone County Arboretum.

Frequently the discovery comes years after the borer was first introduced to the area. For example, it is estimated that the infestation in Anderson Township, Cincinnati, Ohio had already been active with the beetle for at least 4 years prior to being discovered in 2006. So from 2002 to 2006, Emerald Ash Borer was present with no quarantine to prevent its spread. Within that four year period, it is quite possible that infested firewood was legally cut, sold, and moved, starting a new infestation in a completely new area hundreds of miles away. With this in mind, we strongly recommend that you don’t move firewood out of your immediate area even if you are not under a state or federally imposed quarantine. Buy it at or near the campground, and don’t take the wood to another site or bring it back home with you–burn it where you bought it. While this may be inconvenient, it is the most effective way to slow the spread of this beetle until we can find a treatment option that is realistic and cost–effective for large–scale, municipal operations.

Research into EAB continues, and rather than repeating what is already available, the following websites are excellent sources of the most up–to–date results and quarantines.  An excellent starting point is http://www.emeraldashborer.info. This website is a cooperative effort regularly updated with information from many research universities and government agencies.

Create your own plan
Read our “Recommendations Document” for tips on how to develop your own site–specific plan for managing your ash trees in the midst of the EAB invasion.

Updated May 2012

Frequently Asked Questions:
USDA	USDA
USDA Pest Alert	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/EAB.pdf
EAB vs. Native Borers	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/e-2939.pdf
Current EAB Map	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/MultiState_EABpos.pdf
Management Recommendations	BooneCountyEABMgmt.pdf
Suggested Replacement Trees	AshTreeAlternatives.pdf
Ash Identification / EAB Signs
Ash tree look-alikes	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/e2892ash.pdf
	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/E2942.pdf
Signs and Symptoms	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/E-2938.pdf
Host Trees	http://www.emeraldashborer.info/files/hostrange.pdf
State-by-State Information
Illinois	http://www.agr.state.il.us/eab/
Indiana	http://www.entm.purdue.edu/EAB/
Kentucky	http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entomology.php
Michigan	http://www.michigan.gov/mda/0,1607,7-125-1568_2390_18298---,00.html
Ohio	http://www.ohioagriculture.gov/eab/

This packet was put together by the Boone County Arboretum, Union, Kentucky. Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati residents seeking more information can contact the Boone County Arboretum by phone (859) 384-4999, or by email arboretum@boonecountyky.org.