New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is encouraging New York pool owners to participate in the Division of Lands and Forests’ annual Asian Longhorned Beetle Swimming Pool Survey during the month of August.

This is the time of year when Asian longhorned beetles (ALB) emerge as adults and are most active outside of their host tree. The goal of the survey is to look for and find these exotic, invasive beetles before they can cause serious damage to our forests and street trees.

DEC is requesting that people with swimming pools keep an eye out for any insects that resemble ALB when checking their pool filters. If a suspicious insect is found, e-mail photos to foresthealth@dec.ny.gov or mail the insect to the Division of Lands and Forests’ Forest Health Diagnostic Lab for identification, Attn: Jessica Cancelliere, 108 Game Farm Road, Delmar, NY 12054.

Anyone can learn how to recognize and report the beetle, as well as the signs it leaves behind:

• ALB are about 1.5 inches long, black with white spots, and have long black and white antennae.
• These pests leave perfectly round exit holes (about the size of a dime) in branches and tree trunks.
• Sawdust-like material called frass will collect on branches and around the base of the tree.

ALB is a wood boring beetle native to Asia that was accidentally introduced to the United States through wood packing materials. These pests attack a variety of hardwoods, including maples, birches, and willows, among others, and have caused the death of hundreds of thousands of trees across the country. The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (DAM), in cooperation with the animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), has worked diligently to manage the ALB infestations in our state and has succeeded in eradicating the invasive beetle from Staten Island, Manhattan, Islip and Eastern Queens.

Photos, from aboove: Adult Asian longhorned beetle in a pool, and Exit holes created by an Asian longhorned beetle, by Dennis Haugen, USDA FS.