In September 1998 infested trees were found outside Amityville, in Lindenhurst. Hoebeke and other entomologists agree that this newly introduced species may be the worst urban menace to hit American shores since the gypsy moth arrived more than a century ago. In its native asia, anoplophora glabripennis is known as the starry-sky beetle because of its dramatic markings. It attacks and kills trees in China and Korea-mostly maples, poplars, and willows but also mulberries, chinaberries, horse chestnuts, birches, and elms. The implications are enormous.
Maples are the most widely planted shade trees in many northeastern cities.
People in other parts of the country shouldn't be complacent, however. The native distribution of a species is often a good indicator of its ability to establish itself in a new locale. In other words, it is well adapted to infest most of the continental United States. The modus operandi of the Asian long-horned beetle resembles that of many of its relatives in the family Cerambycidae. After mating in early summer, a female finds a secure spot on a branch and chews a hole in the bark with her strong mandibles.