Developing a Program to Increase Early Detection and Reporting of Exotic Woodboring Pests

NOrth American forests are threatened by the steady stream of exotic invasive woodboring and bark beetles that arrive in solid wood packing material (SWPM)and raw wood products. Although protocols at ports of entry routinely intercept many exotic invasive pests, our borders are still permeable, as indicated by regular detections of exotic invasive species by USDA APHISPPQinspectors in interior warehouses (Haack 2006). A detailed pest risk assessment suggests that logistical challenges associated with port inspections are intractable and that other options should be pursued to augment these efforts (USDAAPHISand USDAFS2000). Some of these options, such as enforcement of more stringent importation requirements, are international in scope, while other promising actions can occur on a more local level. Over the past 15 years, private citizens in the Midwest have made numerous interceptions of exotic invasivewoodboring and bark beetles. These detections have taken place at varying points of the forest invasion process, from before the pest has escaped into the surrounding environment until after its widespread establishment. For example, in 1992, the pine shoot beetle (Tomicus piniperda) was reported by a Christmas tree grower in Ohio,but only after it had already established over a six-state area (Haack et al. 1993). In contrast, in 2002 the European wood wasp (Sirex noctilio) was intercepted before entering the Hoosier National Forest by an alert Bloomington, IN warehouse worker (USDA FS FHP 2003, USDAAPHIS 2007). The worker captured an unusual insect resting on a crate and gave it to his supervisor. The supervisor was curious enough to contact an entomologist at Indiana University, who tentatively identified the specimen and sent it to USDAAPHIS,who conducted surveys of