Tree-killing beetles unfazed by harsh winter

BY MIKE NOLAN mnolan@southtownstar.com March 27, 2014 5:26PM

An adult emerald ash borer. | File photo

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Updated: March 28, 2014 2:09AM

As cold as it got this winter in the Chicago area, it probably did little harm to a tree-killing bug that is costing some communities millions of dollars.

Some people who are on the front lines of the battle against the emerald ash borer had hoped the third-coldest winter on record might have been their ally.

In Oak Lawn, where nearly 1,500 ash trees ultimately will be removed because of the beetle infestation, ash borer larvae still were thriving despite a season that had its share of below-zero temperatures.

Matt Basile, the villages forester, recently checked some ash trees in his community and didnt see any evidence of the cold affecting the bugs.

I was hoping the cold would kill some of them and maybe buy us some time, he said Thursday. It doesnt seem like it made much of an impact, from what Ive seen.

First confirmed in Illinois more than seven years ago, the tiny green beetle has been blamed for killing ash trees throughout the Chicago area. Some Southland communities, such as Tinley Park and Orland Park, expect to spend millions of dollars in the coming years removing thousands of infested trees and replacing them.

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Tree-killing beetles unfazed by harsh winter