Successful Eradication of the Asian Longhorn Beetle, Anoplophora glabripennis, from North-Eastern Italy: Protocol, Techniques and Results

Abstract

The Asian Longhorn Beetle (ALB), Anoplophora glabripennis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), is an important and extremely polyphagous wood-boring beetle native to Asia. In the 1990s, ALB was accidentally introduced into North America and Europe. In 2009, a large ALB infestation was found in the Veneto Region (north-eastern Italy), in the municipality of Cornuda (Treviso province). Eradication actions were immediately undertaken, based on delimitation of infested and buffer zones, tree visual inspections, felling and chipping of infested trees, trapping protocols, and citizen alerts. A total of 36,361 trees, belonging to 16 genera, were surveyed twice a year over an area of 7594 hectares. In 2020, after 11 years of eradication measures, the ALB population of Cornuda was declared eradicated. Overall, 2361 trees belonging to 8 genera were felled and destroyed, of which 1157 were found to be infested by ALB. This paper describes all the actions carried out and the procedures applied in order to eradicate ALB from north-eastern Italy, providing a useful example for current and future ALB eradication programs.

Research on Photoinduction-Based Technology for Trapping Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis (Motschulsky, 1853) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae)

“…Many management strategies have been widely used to monitor and control A. glabripennis , including the eradication of infested trees [ 12 ], chemical insecticide treatment [ 39 , 40 ], and biological control of natural enemies [ 41 , 42 , 43 ]. However, eradication programs have proven to be one of the most effective methods.…”

“…To accurately detect and estimate its population density, a great deal of research has indicated that olfactory signals play an important role in the intra- and interspecific communication of A. glabripennis adults [ 6 , 7 , 9 ]. Several sex pheromones and host kairomones have been identified, and single pheromones, as well as a combination of both semiochemical types, have been used as tools for detection and monitoring in A. glabripennis adults in the field [ 10 , 11 ], but few beetles were captured by the dozens of traps at Cornuda, Italy [ 12 ], and Paddock wood, UK [ 13 ]. Xu and Teale [ 9 ] also suggested that semiochemical-based traps baited with a mixture of host kairomones (plant volatile organic compounds) and sex pheromones have still not reached operational efficacy for A. glabripennis adults in field bioassays.…”

Invasive bark beetle Dryocoetes himalayensis (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) – A threat for walnut trees (Juglans spp.) in Europe?

“…Invasive species of scolytid beetles with high aggressivity are capable of suppressing their host plant species throughout whole regions within a few years (Cullingham et al., 2011; Montecchio et al., 2016). Such a loss of production (and also costs of related plant protection measures) results in high financial damage and negative social impacts (Marchioro & Faccoli, 2021; Montecchio et al., 2016; Valenta et al., 2017).…”

Predicting Distribution of the Asian Longhorned Beetle, Anoplophora glabripennis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and Its Natural Enemies in China

“…For example, it took 11 years to completely eradicate A . glabripennis in the Cornuda region of northeast Italy [ 11 ]. However, it is difficult to eradicate A .…”