Adult emerald ash borer found in Johnson County, Iowa, triggering investigation by specialist team that fails to confirm infestation; statewide quarantine issued on Feb. 4 restricting movement of firewood, logs, woodchips, nursery stock, remains in place

Aimee Bellah

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa , June 13, 2014 (press release) – Adult beetle submitted by resident, efforts still underway to locate infestation

An adult Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) submitted by an Iowa City resident to the Iowa EAB Team has been positively identified as the destructive beetle by a federal identifier. A follow-up examination of ash trees growing in the vicinity of where the beetle was collected has failed to confirm an infestation.

A statewide quarantine restricting the movement of hardwood firewood, ash logs, wood chips and ash tree nursery stock out of Iowa into non-quarantined areas of other states was issued on Feb. 4, 2014 and remains in place.

“The discovery of an adult EAB without being able to find further evidence of an infestation is fairly unusual, but it does serve as another reminder to homeowners and communities in Iowa that the threat from this destructive beetle is very real,” said State Entomologist Robin Pruisner of the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. “The Iowa EAB Team will continue to work with officials in Johnson County and other communities to help them prepare, diagnose and respond to the threat posed by EAB.”

The Iowa EAB Team provides EAB diagnostic assistance to landowners and includes officials from Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS), Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and the USDA Forest Service.

The Iowa EAB Team strongly cautions Iowans not to transport firewood across county or state lines, since the movement of firewood throughout Iowa or to other states increases the risk of spreading EAB infestations. Most EAB infestations in the United States have been started by people unknowingly transporting infested firewood, nursery plants or sawmill logs.

Besides being transported by vehicle, the adult beetle can also fly short distances of approximately two to five miles.

Please contact Iowa EAB Team members to have suspicious looking trees checked. The State of Iowa will continue to track the movement of EAB on a county-by-county basis. Before a county can be officially recognized as infested, proof of a reproducing population is needed and an EAB must be collected and verified by USDA entomologists.

To learn more about EAB and other pests that are threatening Iowa’s tree population, please visit www.IowaTreePests.com. Please contact any of the following members of the Iowa EAB Team for further information:
Robin Pruisner, IDALS State Entomologist, 515-725-1470, Robin.Pruisner@IowaAgriculture.gov
Paul Tauke, DNR State Forester, 515-242-6898, Paul.Tauke@dnr.iowa.gov
Tivon Feeley, DNR Forest Health Coordinator, 515-281-4915, Tivon.feeley@dnr.iowa.gov
Emma Hanigan, DNR Urban Forest Coordinator, 515-281-5600, emma.hanigan@dnr.iowa.gov
Mike Kintner, IDALS, 515-725-1470, Mike.Kintner@IowaAgriculture.gov
Jesse Randall, ISU Extension Forester, 515-294-1168, Randallj@iastate.edu
Mark Shour, ISU Extension Entomologist, 515-294-5963, mshour@iastate.edu
Laura Jesse, ISU Extension Entomologist, ISU Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic, 515-294-0581, ljesse@iastate.edu
Donald Lewis, ISU Extension Entomologist, 515-294-1101, drlewis@iastate.edu
Jeff Iles, ISU Extension Horticulturist, 515-294-3718, iles@iastate.edu
Zachary Hall, Iowa City Superintendent of Parks, 319-356-5107, zac-hall@iowa-city.org

* All content is copyrighted by Industry Intelligence, or the original respective author or source. You may not recirculate, redistrubte or publish the analysis and presentation included in the service without Industry Intelligence's prior written consent. Please review our terms of use.