Traps are being set up in Tulsa parks to protect Oklahoma’s ash tree population from an invasive species.
When people hike or bike on Turkey Mountain, the Tulsa River Parks Authority said they may notice a large purple box hanging in a tree. These are emerald ash borer traps from Oklahoma Forestry Services.
The tiny green beetle is an invasive species from Asia that gets its name from the way its larvae burrow into ash trees and eat the cambium. Ryan Howell, Turkey Mountain Project Manager at the River Parks Authority, said this destroys the trees’ ability to transport nutrients and water through their leaves, eventually killing them.
Howell said park officials are setting 10 traps in ash trees on Turkey Mountain and another 10 along the Arkansas River. The traps are sticky on the outside and baited on the inside.
“Hopefully, this bait will attract the beetle that flies from tree to tree and spreads like that,” Howell said. “Hopefully the bug will smell the bait off a tree and then fly to our tree with the trap on it and get stuck in the goo outside so you can see its presence.”
It is estimated that 5% of the trees on Turkey Mountain are of the ash variety. Emerald ash borers have not yet been found in the area, and Oklahoma Forestry Services said the beetle has not been spotted in the state since 2016. However, it is destroying trees in other nearby states.
“If they can identify an area that the ash borer is moving into, they can focus their defenses on that area and hopefully build a perimeter wall around Oklahoma to try and stop them from moving in our direction,” Howell said : “It’s a very tough fight, and if we can get ahead of the game in detecting these little things, hopefully that will help keep our ash population intact.
Emerald Ash Borers have been spotted in Arkansas, Kansas, Texas and Missouri. Oklahoma Forestry Services said the beetles have killed tens of millions of ash trees in the United States.
The North American ash provides a great natural habitat for birds and wildlife that are adapted to live in them.
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https://www.news9.com/story/642eb81af1eaa20a463b52fd/oklahoma-forestry-services-partners-with-local-parks-to-detect-trap-invasive-species-killing-ash-trees
