2022-05-02: Dr. Nobua-Berhmann on Invasive Shot Hole Borer and Native Trees
Channel: South Coast CNPS
Date: 2022-05-03

A recent article in the LA Times, (“Invasive beetles are killing SoCal’s trees. Can this local surfer stop them?”, Feb 23, 2022) led us to Dr. Beatriz Nobua-Berhmann, Urban Forestry and Natural Resources Advisor at the University of California Cooperative Extension, an authority on the Invasive Shothole Borer (SHB). She will discuss this threat to our cultivated and wildlands trees and approaches to identify and manage it.

The Invasive Shothole Borers (Euwallacea spp.) are small beetles (roughly the size of a sesame seed) that belong to two closely related and physically identical species: Polyphagous Shothole Borer and Kuroshio Shothole Borer. Both species are believed to have been accidentally introduced into California via wood products and/or shipping material from Southeast Asia. Since ISHB was first identified in Los Angeles County in 2012, the infestation has spread to six other counties, including Orange, San Diego, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Bernardino and Riverside. Susceptible trees include many beloved native trees and species commonly used for landscaping, like sycamores, willows, oaks, cottonwoods, and box elder. Wild areas are particularly susceptible.