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Have you seen this bug?

An adult Asian Longhorned Beetle feeds on the bark of a sentinel tree. Sentinel tree species are those known to attract the beetles and are treated with insecticides that will kill the beetle after it lands on or feeds on the tree.

Provided An adult Asian Longhorned Beetle feeds on the bark of a sentinel tree. Sentinel tree species are those known to attract the beetles and are treated with insecticides that will kill the beetle after it lands on or feeds on the tree.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Photos: Watch out for this bug

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By Eric Schwartzberg, Staff Writer Updated 12:34 PM Thursday, October 1, 2009

Those who spy a shiny, black bug covered with white spots or holes in tree bark might want to take a second look.

Officials from the Ohio Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Ohio State University are heading to southwest Ohio this winter to search for the Asian Longhorned Beetle, which is known to bore holes in the bark of several species of trees.

The resulting damage can kill a tree within two to three years of infestation, according to ODA spokeswoman Kaleigh Frazier.

An employee of Downlite, a bedding manufacturer in Mason that receives materials worldwide, spotted the bug this June in the company’s manufacturing facility, Frazier said. She said there is no way of determining at this point how the bug made its way to southwest Ohio.

“The survey is a proactive approach to determine, if in fact, the beetle does exist out in nature or was it just a unique find in a warehouse,” she said.

From December through February, inspectors will fan out across a 16-mile radius near Mason to scour for the bug in southeastern Butler, southwestern Warren and northern Hamilton counties.

Frazier said they also will look for evidence of the damage the bug can inflict during its larvae stage, when it tunnels into large tree branches and the trunk of trees, including maple, willow, horsechestnut, buckeye and American elm.

The only way to control an infestation is to cut down the trees and chip them into tiny pieces, a method that can lay waste to a tree-lined street, according to the USDA.

Affected trees will show not only holes, but a thin or dying crown or coarse sawdust at the tree base or where two branches meet, according to the ODA. The beetles are between three-fourths and 1 1/4 inch in length and have black antennae with white bands and can be up to 2 1/2 times longer than the body of the beetle.

Those who find a suspected specimen may contact the Ohio Department of Agriculture Plant Pest Division at (614) 728-6400 or the local Ohio State Extension office at (513) 695-1311.

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