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oops, I mean beetle battle 
Renee
that's ok, i fixed it for you -ben
PINELANDS OKS CUTTING 800 ACRES IN BEETLE BATTLE
Date: 030222
From: http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/
By Jack Kaskey, Staff Writer, (609) 272-7213
Press of Atlantic City, February 22, 2003
New Lisbon - The Pinelands Commission on Friday authorized the New
Jersey Forest Service to cut 800 acres of forest over the next two
years in an effort to control infestations of a tree-eating insect,
the southern pine beetle.
Only half the size of a grain of rice, the beetle has destroyed about
1,270 acres of forest at hundreds of locations across Cape May,
Cumberland and southern Atlantic counties since it first was
discovered in the Garden State in December 2001, according to the
Forest Service.
Foresters are concerned that if it is not actively controlled, the
pine beetle could spread exponentially in coming years, devastating
the state's extensive pine forests.
With Pinelands Commission approval now in hand, the service plans to
clear about 400 acres in Cape May County before the beetles become
active in the spring. Most of the areas to be cleared are in and
around Belleplain State Forest and Peaslee Wildlife Management Area in
Dennis and Upper Townships.
The commission's memorandum of agreement with the Forest Service also
allows the cutting of as many as 15 trees per acre on an additional 50
acres annually.
Once cut, infested trees will be chipped and removed, piled and
burned, or piled and covered with a plastic tarp.
During aerial surveys last summer, the state Forest Service
identified 264 outbreaks ranging from single trees to 250 acres in
Peaslee.
Other large infestations include 130 acres and 123 acres in
Belleplain, 119 acres in Lester G. MacNamara Wildlife Management Area,
160 acres of private land southwest of Seaville, and 145 acres at Bear
Swamp Natural Area in Cumberland County.
In spring, newly hatched beetles fly as far as two miles in search of
a weakened pine tree, often one struck by lightning. The bugs burrow
through the tree's bark and then dig S-shaped channels between the
bark and the wood where they lay their eggs.
Although only one-eighth inch long, the southern pine beetle emits a
powerful pheromone that attracts thousands of others to its victim.
The bugs carry a blue-stain fungus that clogs the tree's vascular
systems, and the labyrinth of tunnels ultimately girdles the trees.
Once a population is established in a single tree, the bugs move to
adjacent healthy trees, spreading through a pine forest as fast as 50
feet a day.
Dead trees remain standing, their needles turning from green to
yellow to brown in about four months, increasing the potential for
forest fires. However, the Forest Service plans to leave standing
those dead trees that have been abandoned by the beetles in order to
provide habitat for insect predators, such as the checkered beetle.
* * *
To email Jack Kaskey at The Press: JKaskey@pressofac.com
Renee
that's ok, i fixed it for you -ben
PINELANDS OKS CUTTING 800 ACRES IN BEETLE BATTLE
Date: 030222
From: http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/
By Jack Kaskey, Staff Writer, (609) 272-7213
Press of Atlantic City, February 22, 2003
New Lisbon - The Pinelands Commission on Friday authorized the New
Jersey Forest Service to cut 800 acres of forest over the next two
years in an effort to control infestations of a tree-eating insect,
the southern pine beetle.
Only half the size of a grain of rice, the beetle has destroyed about
1,270 acres of forest at hundreds of locations across Cape May,
Cumberland and southern Atlantic counties since it first was
discovered in the Garden State in December 2001, according to the
Forest Service.
Foresters are concerned that if it is not actively controlled, the
pine beetle could spread exponentially in coming years, devastating
the state's extensive pine forests.
With Pinelands Commission approval now in hand, the service plans to
clear about 400 acres in Cape May County before the beetles become
active in the spring. Most of the areas to be cleared are in and
around Belleplain State Forest and Peaslee Wildlife Management Area in
Dennis and Upper Townships.
The commission's memorandum of agreement with the Forest Service also
allows the cutting of as many as 15 trees per acre on an additional 50
acres annually.
Once cut, infested trees will be chipped and removed, piled and
burned, or piled and covered with a plastic tarp.
During aerial surveys last summer, the state Forest Service
identified 264 outbreaks ranging from single trees to 250 acres in
Peaslee.
Other large infestations include 130 acres and 123 acres in
Belleplain, 119 acres in Lester G. MacNamara Wildlife Management Area,
160 acres of private land southwest of Seaville, and 145 acres at Bear
Swamp Natural Area in Cumberland County.
In spring, newly hatched beetles fly as far as two miles in search of
a weakened pine tree, often one struck by lightning. The bugs burrow
through the tree's bark and then dig S-shaped channels between the
bark and the wood where they lay their eggs.
Although only one-eighth inch long, the southern pine beetle emits a
powerful pheromone that attracts thousands of others to its victim.
The bugs carry a blue-stain fungus that clogs the tree's vascular
systems, and the labyrinth of tunnels ultimately girdles the trees.
Once a population is established in a single tree, the bugs move to
adjacent healthy trees, spreading through a pine forest as fast as 50
feet a day.
Dead trees remain standing, their needles turning from green to
yellow to brown in about four months, increasing the potential for
forest fires. However, the Forest Service plans to leave standing
those dead trees that have been abandoned by the beetles in order to
provide habitat for insect predators, such as the checkered beetle.
* * *
To email Jack Kaskey at The Press: JKaskey@pressofac.com
