PINE BARK BEETLES of FLORIDA
Pine bark beetles are insects that normally attack stressed and dying pine trees. They usually don't infest trees that are otherwise healthy and vigorous. These native beetles feed and breed in the inner bark of pine trees and introduce blue-stain fungi into the tree that often causes or hastens the death of the tree.
In natural forest settings, pine bark beetles serve an important function. They weed out weak trees and free up resources for healthy ones. However, over the past fifteen months, more trees in Palm Beach County have become susceptible to the pine bark beetle. In most cases this can be attributed to the damage caused by recent hurricanes. Feeder roots broke when the trees rocked back and forth in the sustained winds, and although the trees had enough resources stored to look healthy for several months, they eventually became stressed and died.
There are five native species of pine bark beetles that are important in Florida: three species of Ips engraver beetles (Ips calligraphus, I. grandicollis, and I. avulsus) and two species of Dendroctonus, including the southern pine beetle or SPB (D. frontalis) and the black turpentine beetle (D. terebrans).
IPS PINE ENGRAVER BEETLES
The three common species in Florida tend to infest different parts of a tree: I. calligraphus infests large-diameter material near the bottom of a mature tree,
I. grandicollis infests the mid to upper bole (or lower bole of smaller trees), and I. avulsus prefers the small-diameter material in or near the crown. A healthy, vigorous pine tree is not likely to be susceptible to attack by Ips beetles, and they are normally restricted to colonizing pines that are already very stressed, damaged, or dead for other reasons.
BLACK TURPINTINE BEETLE (BTB)
The black turpentine beetle (Dendroctonus terebrans) is the largest of these pine bark beetle species. It attacks near the base of the tree where the inner bark is thickest, and may also infest fresh stumps. BTB activity is often found in association with Ips and SPB infestations, and the beetles are attracted to stressed and injured trees. BTB is not usually known to spread aggressively or to kill healthy trees, and trees can sometimes recover from a limited number of attacks by this species.
SOUTHERN PINE BEETLE (SPB)
Southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis) is perhaps the best-known pest of southern pines. Like Ips and black turpentine beetles, SPB normally attacks stressed and dying pine trees. Historically, the range of SPB in the state has included only North and Central Florida, and no SPB activity has been recorded south of Orange and Hernando Counties. Bark beetle activity observed in South Florida can most likely be attributed to Ips and black turpentine beetles.Visit the links below for more information about pine bark beetles from the Florida Dept. Agriculture & Con. Serv. Division of Plant Industry:
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