The beetle is not native to North America, but arrived to the continent as a stowaway from China, hidden in solid wood packing materials. Because the beetles live deep in the trees, they can be difficult to find. Adult beetles are only active in the summer, spending the rest of the year inside trees. Beetle larvae bore into the trunk and branches, causing heavy flow of sap from those wounds. Infested trees have large accumulations of frass a mix of sawdust and insect waste at the base of the tree.
Infested trees produce unseasonal yellowing or droopy leaves.
Eventually, the beetles can kill the tree. There is currently no known treatment for trees infested with Asian Longhorn Beetles. There are no known lures or traps to catch the beetles. Scientists are currently investigating insecticides that can be injected into the tree to kill the beetles but not harm the trees. For now, the only way to stop the beetle from spreading to other trees is to destroy the infested tree.