Types of bark beetles, their descriptions and photos

The bark beetle , a beetle measuring 4-8 mm, is one of the most dangerous forest pests in the central part of Russia. The main food supply for the bark beetle is spruce, pine, birch, and less commonly fir, cedar and larches. The bark beetle feeds on the bast tissue of a tree - this is the inner layer of bark along which nutrients move from the roots to the crown of the tree. When the bast is eaten around the circumference, the tree's nutrition stops completely and the tree dies. Adults also use the bark of the tree to breed offspring. The functional purpose of the bark beetle in nature is sanitary cleaning of the forest from diseased and weakened trees. However, in conditions of an uncontrolled increase in the number of the bark beetle population, healthy spruce and pine trees are also at risk of “invasion.” Therefore, it is important not only to promptly prevent tree diseases, but also to clear the area of dead wood and diseased plantings - potential breeding and wintering sites for the bark beetle.

The most dangerous representatives of the species are: the bark beetle, the pine beetle, the Siberian engraver, the fluffy polygraph, the birch beetle, the greater pine borer, the spruce sawfly, the pine sawfly, the pine hawkmoth, the pine moth, the spruce and pine leafrollers.

Description and appearance

Who the bark beetle is is known everywhere, since these pests live wherever trees grow.

More specifically, the bark beetle, a beetle from the vast family of weevils, looks like an unremarkable little dark bug. The size usually does not exceed 1 cm, however, in the tropics there are varieties up to 2.5 cm. The head seems to be lowered down. The antennae are geniculate and end in a club.

The limbs are flat, hairless, or covered with sparse reddish hairs. The body is protected by strong leathery elytra, under which there are developed wings with veins. Beetles are capable of flying over considerable distances.

Appearance

A female bark beetle can lay up to 80 eggs per season. The development cycle of beetles is very short: a new generation of pests appears within 50 days.

The bark beetle larva, sometimes incorrectly called a caterpillar, can cause more damage to a tree than an adult insect due to its gluttony.

The larva has a thick segmented body of almost white color, 1-1.5 cm long. The head is small, hard, yellow or brown, with powerful jaws-mandibles. The larvae grind wood fibers with their jaws, moving along the passages with the help of callous pads on the body.

Bug Danger

As a result of their vital activity, beetles cause enormous damage to trees and entire forests. The tree is the main target of the bark beetle. During the mating season, males make a small tunnel in the tree, calling and attracting the attention of females with the help of special substances - pheromones. The fertilized female continues the work begun by the male, gnawing wood for future offspring, and the male goes in search of a new female.

An important point to remember is that the beetles themselves do not cause significant harm to the tree. The main threat comes from the larvae, which suffer from excessive gluttony.

An insatiable appetite leads to the fact that the bark beetle larva gnaws entire labyrinths of tunnels in the wood, as a result of which it becomes unusable.

The larval stage can last several years, during which time the damage done may be irreparable. Therefore, timely detection of the bark beetle or its larvae is quite essential.

Types of bark beetles

In total, there are about 750 species of bark beetles in the world; 140 species live in Russia. The most common wood pests are the following.

The spruce beetle is a black beetle up to 9 mm long. Prefers to live in the lower part of coniferous trees.
Birch sapwood inhabits European birch trees. Trees of this species have soft, fibrous wood with a high moisture content, which attracts this pest.
Typograph is one of the most malicious pests of coniferous forests, measuring 1.5 cm.
The engraver (chalcograph) attacks the tops of coniferous trees because it feeds on thin young bark.
The clover beetle is a species that inhabits the root system of meadow and forage grasses. From Europe it spread to the New World.

Prevention of tree infestation

Installation of pheromone traps along the boundaries of the site. This will make it possible to detect the presence of the bark beetle at an early stage and take preventive measures to combat it: treating spruce and pine trees with insecticides, monitoring and timely removal of infected trees. This is only a preventative measure and does not guarantee that the trees will not be infected.
Treatment of healthy trees against bark beetle during the flight of the bark beetle. The bark beetle is not active all year round. In the spring, at the end of April, the bark beetle wakes up from hibernation and flies to living trees to reproduce. In June, the second generation of bark beetle hatches and more and more trees become infected. There can be up to four such flights over the summer! At the end of September, the bark beetle reduces activity and looks for places to winter.
Removal of infected and dead trees and destruction of infected logging residues. The bark beetle can live for a long time in dead and fallen trees. And under favorable conditions, it can fly out and colonize healthy trees on the site.
Timely sanitary pruning of trees. Pruning dry branches on spruce and pine trees significantly increases the resistance of a tree infected with diseases, rots and parasites, which increases the tree's immunity.
Stimulation of the crown and root system of the tree. Feeding trees and treating trees against parasites and diseases, as well as stimulating growth, also increases the resistance of spruce and pine trees to bark beetles.

If the tree is already infested, then it will no longer be possible to save it, and in order to save the rest of the trees on the site, it must be removed as quickly as possible, and the logging residues removed or burned!

What does an infected tree look like?

It is difficult to identify by eye a tree that has just been infested with a beetle, which nevertheless is already eating the bark, but over the course of 2-4 years the tree gradually dries out. On the surface of the bark you can see numerous holes - the so-called exit holes, through which adult individuals leave the shelter.

On the cut (cut) of a dead tree you can see a specific pattern in the form of a “feather” left by the bark beetle. B, which the female did to lay eggs. From it there are branches made by the larvae. They end in a “pupal cradle” - a chamber in which pupation occurs.

Benefits of professional processing

If a bark beetle is found on a tree in the garden, it is not a fact that it will limit itself only to living plants. The beetle quickly spreads throughout the entire area, so it is necessary to take comprehensive measures and carry out a total cleaning of the area. Only professional line preparations of safety class 4 and special equipment are used, which allows covering any area. The substances that the company’s specialists use in their work are not sold in the public domain, since special permits are required to work with them. Anti-parasite products are on the list recommended by Rospotrebnadzor, their properties fully meet the requirements of the SES, and they are highly effective, allowing them to destroy the beetle in one treatment.

The most commonly used is cold fog. It differs from irrigation in the size of the droplets and more dense coverage of the territory. The idea is to spray a fine suspension of the product under pressure, into which the working solution is converted in the generator. A cloud of tiny particles hangs in the air, slowly drifting in air currents, and then settles evenly on all surfaces, including vertical ones. That is why the effectiveness of the method is so high, since it penetrates into any hard-to-reach places. This type of cleaning is recommended for both the garden and residential premises.

The products are absolutely safe for humans, but completely destroy all types of insects in any form of development. When choosing a company, you need to pay attention to ensure that there is a license for the specified type of activity, it is advisable to ask how long and successfully it has been operating in the services market and what reviews there are from clients about it. If an organization is trustworthy, it guarantees:

use only certified products;
quick departure to the site;
high quality of services;
affordable prices.

Price for bark beetle treatment

Service	Price, ₽
Removing infected trees	from 300/wood

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50% discount on the provision of the second service 50% discount on the processing of the second apartment 10% discount for holders of a Muscovite social card
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For Jur. persons

What trees does the pest attack?

Under normal conditions, bark beetles live in:

stumps;
windbreak;
old sick trees.

Nutrition

Feeding on the wood of obsolete trees, bark beetles clear forest areas.

The diet of the pest depends on the area in which it lives and the species to which it belongs. Most often, bark beetles are pests of coniferous forests. Some bark beetles live in the roots of plants, others in seeds and fruits.

The bark beetle feeds mainly on what is under the bark of the tree:

bast – vascular-fibrous, lower part of the cortex;
sapwood (sapwood) – actively growing layers of wood that contain many nutrients, minerals and liquid.

Preventative measures in the garden

The pest is terrible not only for garden crops. It can start in the wooden walls of a house or buildings on the site. Therefore, preventive measures will not be superfluous.

To do this, it is necessary to regularly clear the area of old leaves, branches, and stumps, since insects can overwinter there. If there are plantings near your dacha affected by the typograph or other bark beetle, it is better to destroy them (cut down and burn) to prevent the spread of the pest.

A very important place is given to spring and autumn care (mulching the soil, gartering, pruning the crown, fertilizing), which will help prepare for temperature changes, inspecting the vegetation to identify beetles, and treating with complex preparations.

If there is no visible damage or signs of disease on the tree, you can try to save it. Brown sawdust indicates that the beetles are still making tunnels under the bark. But when the bark peels off easily in the zone of insect penetration, the drill flour becomes light, the leaves and crown begin to wither - the only option is to burn it. It will not be possible to save the patient.

Bark beetle in the house and how to deal with it

Bark beetles can damage wooden parts of buildings, as well as furniture. The following facts indicate that a house is infested with bark beetles:

Detection of small round holes in wood - passages.
Mounds of drill flour - waste products of larvae.
Extraneous sounds (rustling, tapping, reminiscent of a ticking clock) accompanying the destructive activity of insects.

A pest may appear in the house:

from improperly processed building materials;
from old or antique wooden furniture.

If the insects themselves and traces of their presence are detected, war should be started immediately. Various pest control methods are used.

Chemicals

It will not be possible to fight bark beetles, like other household pests, since the beetles and their offspring live deep in the wood. In order for the insecticide solution to reach its target, it is necessary:

spray the preparation until the surface is completely wetted;
immerse the entire boards in the solution (before construction begins);
drill holes in the structure at a distance of 10-20 cm from each other and pour insecticide into them from a syringe.

To kill bark beetles, the following chemicals are used in liquid form:

Clipper;
Bi-58 New;
Antishashelin;
Antibug;
Tree healer.

The most effective method of chemical control is the spraying of phosphine gas, which kills insects at all stages of development. However, such treatment can only be carried out by certified pest control services.

Important! The use of chemical toxic substances to combat bark beetles must be carried out in the absence of children, pets and in compliance with safety measures!

Pheromone traps

Trap houses are hung on trees, in which bait is placed with an odor that attracts adult wood pests. The design prevents beetles from getting out.

Pheromone trap

The method has disadvantages:

the smell can attract a large number of insects from neighboring areas;
In this way, only adult flying individuals can be destroyed, but not larvae.

Application of the microwave method

The use of microwaves allows you to destroy insects located in the thickness of wooden structures. When exposed to high temperatures (600C), both adult bark beetles, eggs, and beetle larvae die.

Specialists treat the affected area in a targeted manner.

Attention! The only condition is that there should be no metal fasteners, for example, nails, screws, etc.

Prevention of tree infestation

Installation of pheromone traps along the boundaries of the site. This will make it possible to detect the presence of the bark beetle at an early stage and take preventive measures to combat it: treating spruce and pine trees with insecticides, monitoring and timely removal of infected trees. This is only a preventative measure and does not guarantee that the trees will not be infected.
Treatment of healthy trees against bark beetle during the flight of the bark beetle. The bark beetle is not active all year round. In the spring, at the end of April, the bark beetle wakes up from hibernation and flies to living trees to reproduce. In June, the second generation of bark beetle hatches and more and more trees become infected. There can be up to four such flights over the summer! At the end of September, the bark beetle reduces activity and looks for places to winter.
Removal of infected and dead trees and destruction of infected logging residues. The bark beetle can live for a long time in dead and fallen trees. And under favorable conditions, it can fly out and colonize healthy trees on the site.
Timely sanitary pruning of trees. Pruning dry branches on spruce and pine trees significantly increases the resistance of a tree infected with diseases, rots and parasites, which increases the tree's immunity.
Stimulation of the crown and root system of the tree. Feeding trees and treating trees against parasites and diseases, as well as stimulating growth, also increases the resistance of spruce and pine trees to bark beetles.

Natural enemies

Under natural conditions, the number of pest beetles is regulated by insectivorous birds. Among those who eat bark beetles, the woodpecker is undoubtedly the leader. It extracts larvae from under the bark of a tree. Other poison dart birds (nuthatches, pikas) can also destroy bark beetle larvae, but in smaller quantities.

Many birds hunt adult beetles during flight:

tits;
flycatchers;
swallows;
swifts.

On a note! For biological control on an industrial scale, species of chalcid parasites that parasitize the larvae are used, which are bred in special laboratories and released on forest lands.

Characteristic

Bark beetles are small beetles, the size of which ranges from 0.8-9 mm. Systematically, they are closest to weevils. Bark beetles differ from them in having a head that is not extended into the rostrum (sometimes a head with a poorly developed rostrum), always geniculate antennae with a clearly demarcated large club, thin tarsus lacking a spongy or hairy sole, with cylindrical segments, of which the 3rd segment is only rarely weak bilobed or heart-shaped. In appearance, some bark beetles ( Hylastes

) are similar to elephants of the subfamily Cossoninae

.
Biologically, bark beetles differ well from weevils in that their females penetrate with their entire bodies into plant tissue, where they lay more or less complex passages. All bark beetles are herbivorous. Most species are typical wood-eating insects, usually settling under the bark, less often in the bark or wood of trees; a small number of species ( Thamnurgus
,
Hylastinus
) live in the stems of herbaceous plants;
Among the tropical species, some of which were brought to Europe, there are representatives that live in the fruits and seeds of tree species ( Hypothenemus
,
Coccotrypes
, etc.) and in the fruits and succulent tubers of herbaceous plants (
Hypothenemus
), with which bark beetles are easily imported into countries where they were previously absent (
Hypothenemus ritchili
,
Coccotrypes dactyliperda
).

Bark beetles have advanced chemical communication and a variety of sexual behavior. Many species of bark beetles, especially in temperate climates, are of great economic importance as stem or technical pests. There are known cases of mass outbreaks of the typograph bark beetle ( Ips typographus

), both at the beginning and at the end of the last century, causing devastation in large forest areas.

Some beetles from the subfamily Scolytinae

(and the closely related subfamily Platypodinae

) “mushroom gardens” are planted in tunnels made in wood: fungal spores are dispersed in them, which become food for their larvae.

No. 1 [Forest Bulletin. Forestry Bulletin, 2008]

Previous name: Bulletin of the Moscow State Forestry University - Forest Bulletin (until 2016) / The journal is a leading scientific and information journal in the field of forestry, ecology, logging, woodworking, chemical technology and wood processing, economics of the forestry complex. The magazine publishes: articles by scientists of higher education, research institutes, foreign specialists, business managers and engineers; texts of scientists' reports at symposia, conferences and meetings; annotations and reviews of new books; journalistic and historical literary materials. Editor-in-Chief – Oblivin Alexander Nikolaevich, Professor, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences and MANVSH, Honored Worker of Science and Technology of the Russian Federation, President of Moscow State University of Forestry, Professor of the Department of Wood Processing Processes and Apparatuses, Moscow State Forestry University

Everywhere the drying out of trees occurred according to the top type. Moscow is home to the small variegated ash beetle (Leperesinus varius (Hylesinus fraxini.), inhabiting the tops of Histiogaster filippovi, the apical bark beetle Ips acuminatus Gill. – mites C. zachneri. 63–134 × 1.5–2.5 needle-shaped, with a rounded apex 3– 5 × 0.8–1.0 – Funk (1985) 110–140 × 10–14 – 60 Leaves at the top are represented only by annual shoots.

Lifestyle Features

In winter, bark beetles sleep on forest floors approximately 2-3 m from the trees on which they previously settled. At the beginning of May, they leave their shelters and fly away in search of easy prey - weak trees. Moreover, the typograph beetle will never confuse a sick and a healthy plant. For example, it is preferable for him to settle on needles that are more than 60 years old. Often the insect can be found on felled trees, timber and logging residues.

The period of activity of bark beetles occurs at the time when birch buds begin to bloom. On a suitable tree, they make holes in the bark and lay eggs under it. After hatching, the larvae eat living tree tissue and burrow a large number of tunnels under the bark. The development period from larva to beetle is 65-70 days. At the beginning of July, young individuals leave the place where their development took place.

Old beetles lay down several more generations, the development of which occurs 10-20 days after the previous one. However, if the summer is cold and rainy, then only one generation will have time to mature. Some individuals (for example, larvae, undeveloped or young beetles, pupae) may remain in the bark over the winter. True, in this case, most of them, as a rule, freeze out.

Main signs of infection

Knowing the main signs of infestation with the typograph beetle, you can promptly protect healthy trees. Damage that occurs during bark beetle attacks includes:

Boring flour found near a tree, as it appears as a result of the crushing of bast and bark tissues by bark beetles. Multiple miniature holes that appear in the bark are a sign of the penetration of the typographer inside. The appearance of woodpeckers and nuthatches in large numbers. Yellowing of needles and their subsequent falling off, which indicates about the imminent death of spruce or pine. The presence of characteristic patterns on the damaged areas that indicate the species of the pest.

Research methodology

Based on information obtained from the processing of literary data, an annotated list of bark beetles of the Bobruisk region was compiled, including 23 species. The taxonomic structure of the family has been studied.

To characterize the habitats, the descriptive nomenclature of K.B. Gorodkova (1984), which allows for zoogeographic analysis based on a unified terminological approach.

Photographs of bark beetle damage on various trees were taken, identified and described according to Stark.

Insects were collected from May to August. For this, three biotopes were selected: biotope No. 1 - mixed forest, biotope No. 2 - pine forest, biotope No. 3 - mixed forest - roadside.

Collection was carried out on damaged trees. At the same time, the bark was removed from the tree and examined for the presence of various Coleoptera. The found specimens were placed in a fixative (92% ethyl alcohol). The collected material was determined in laboratory conditions. Subsequently, fixation was carried out using entomological pins.