Aug 18, 2008 6:48 pm US/Eastern
Asian Longhorned Beetles To Be Surveyed
WORCESTER (WBZ) ―
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Asian Beetle (File Image)
WBZ
The invaders are nearly invisible -- even from a short distance -- but they're lurking in trees, such as maples, in Worcester's Greendale section. Their damage is obvious, but the extent of it is uncertain.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.), says they threaten billions of dollars in losses to lumber, maple syrup, nursery and tourism industries.
"It seems like if it's not controlled, it will get bigger. We had them here in the yard the other day. We saw them," Efrain Malave told WBZ's Ron Sanders as they walked through his yard.
Ron showed WBZ viewers one of the specimens he found in Kendrick Field, where there are baseball diamonds and a municipal swimming pool that is not in use. "You can get a pretty good idea of the size of (the beetle), if you look at my little finger...a third as long as an index finger," he explained.
A U.S.D.A. team gathering in Worcester this week will begin a survey in portions of Worcester, Holden and West Boylston next Monday. "We'll have people on the ground and we'll be trying to figure out the extent of the infestation by surveying in neighborhoods," said Patricia Douglas of the U.S.D.A.
Public cooperation is key to the survey. Residents of the affected area are not being allowed to remove trees, limbs or branches, except to a drop-off lot at Clark and East Mountain streets beginning Wednesday.
Landscaper Bob Murphy is concerned for the yard in which he grew up. "'Hope for the best because we don't wanna lose this tree. It's worth a lot of money. It's been the shade tree for this property 40, 50 years.
One of the branches removed from Kendrick Field looked as if it was machine-gunned. The hope here is that the infestation of the Asian Longhorned Beetle is not as bad as in Chicago or New York where, combined, 8,000 trees have been removed.
Asian Longhorned Beetles cannot be stopped by any known chemical treatment. A spray known by the brand name "Merit" can be used to prevent infestation.
Even if eradication goes well in Worcester, the U.S.D.A. expects it to take five years.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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