May 25, 2009 10:15 pm US/Eastern
Douglas Man May Have Found A Longhorned Beetle
DOUGLAS (WBZ) ―
A Douglas man finds a beetle he thinks might be the dreaded Asian Longhorned Beetle, but has to wait days to know for sure.
Dennis Bishop and his family were enjoying a holiday cookout on Sunday, when his 17-year-old daughter Alexandra felt something wiz by her. "This beetle flew across my face and landed about here on the screen."
She captured the bug and showed it to her father who immediately became concerned. "(It) had an awful likeness to the Asian Longhorned Beetle," he said.
The Asian Longhorned Beetle has infested the city of Worcester, forcing the removal of thousands of trees.
The Asian Longhorned Beetle is a black bug with white spots and striped antennae. The beetle Bishop has trapped in a wine glass has a black body, white spots and striped antennae.
Bishop called the beetle hotline with no luck. "So far, I've gotten the answering machine."
Apparently, the hotline was not staffed over the holiday weekend. Bishop, who fears for his three acres of trees and the deep woods around his property, thinks that's wrong. "You'd like to believe if somebody had a hotline that somebody would be there taking calls."
It is possible this beetle is not the Asian Longhorned Beetle, but rather the
White Spotted Pine Sawyer Beetle, which is frequently mistaken for the Asian Longhorned.
Bishop hopes that's the case, but won't be able to relax until an expert identifies the bug.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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