Vermont Bark and Ambrosia Beetle Records - Vermont Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation

Records were compiled from a number of projects, including survey work for Tomicus piniperda, Early Detection Rapid Response (EDRR) project, and others.

Survey work for Tomicus piniperda began in 1999. Trapping efforts continued through 2005. Over this period, ten Lindgren funnel traps baited with alpha-pinene lure and UHR ethanol were deployed in high-risk sites in most Vermont counties. Traps were placed in the field by mid-March and serviced every two weeks through the end of June. Through our trapping efforts, first records of T. piniperda were made for the following counties: Essex and Orleans Counties in 1999; Caledonia County in 2000; Washington County in 2003; Addison, Grand Isle, and Lamoille Counties in 2004. In September 2004, the entire state of Vermont was quarantined for the pine shoot beetle. Our final surveys for pine shoot beetle were conducted in the four southernmost counties of Vermont in 2005. Traps were deployed in Scots pine stands or red pine stands. That year, fragments of pine shoot beetle were recovered from traps in three Rutland County sites, including Pawlet and two sites in Castleton. By that time, pine shoot beetle had been found in 8 counties in Vermont. A total of about 7,793 non-target bark beetles were collected in the traps. We considered the “by-catch” records provided through this work of value in giving us a handle of what occurs naturally in Vermont. Jessica Rykken identified by-catch Scolytinae. FPR’S participation in the Early Detection Rapid Response (EDRR) project took place in 2009 when we had an opportunity to join Maine, Rhode Island, and Connecticut in running EDRR traps for exotic bark beetles. This was a cooperative national program that had a goal of surveying 1/3 of the country every year. Mary Burnham screened those trap catches and identified non-targets. Specimens were submitted and species confirmed by specialists.