Beetle Biology
Dendroctonus ponderosae is the Latin name for mountain pine beetle. The average life span of the mountain pine beetle is one year. The mountain pine beetle larvae live under the bark during the winter. They continue to feed in the spring and transform into pupae in June and July. The adult mountain pine beetle emerges from the tree in the summer and early fall. The mountain pine beetle transmits a fungus that stains the tree's sapwood blue.Beetle Impacts
- By 2004 the mountain pine beetle had affected about seven million hectares of B.C. forests.
- The mountain pine beetle infestation will have economic implications in the future for 30 communities around the province.
- The livelihood of about 25, 000 families in British Columbia have been impacted by the beetle infestation.
Contributing Factors
- The mountain pine beetle prefers mature timber. The lodgepole pine trees are classed as being mature after 80 years.
- We have three times more mature lodgepole pine now than 90 years ago because equipment and techniques for protecting forests against forest fires have improved greatly.
- Cold weather kills mountain pine beetle larvae. Sustained temperatures of -25 Celsius in the early fall or late spring, and -40 Celsius in the winter are needed to control populations.
- Hot and dry summers leave pine drought-stressed and more susceptible to attack.
Infestation Information
- The current mountain pine beetle infestation can be traced back to 1993.
- A hectare is considered infested if there are more than 10 beetle attacked trees.
- The mountain pine beetle outbreaks happen anywhere: in mountain subdivisions, backyards, municipal parks as well as wilderness areas.
- Mountain pine beetles have been found as far north as Fort St. James, as far east as Cranbrook, as far west as Houston and as far south as Manning Park.
- It is impossible to predict the direction and spread rate of the mountain pine beetle.
- There are three stages in a mountain pine beetle attack: green, red and grey.
- The mountain pine beetle has been found in 12 western American states and Mexico as well as B.C. and Alberta.
