The Life Cycle of Pine Bark Beetles

Have you ever heard the crunching of beetles in your pine trees? Then you may know that the culprit, the pine bark beetle can quickly devastate your pine trees. And unlike the Japanese Beetle that only eats the outsides of your plants. The Pine Bark beetle has larvae that eat the inner bark of your trees. In fact, they even grow up in their beetle form inside the tree. This infographic does a great job of describing the life cycle of the Pine Bark beetle. 

What is the life cycle of the pine bark beetle?

Like most beetles, the pine bark beetle hatches from eggs into larvae. The attacking beetle will lay its eggs in clusters on the outer bark of the tree. From there the larvae hatch and burrow inside. Soon the larvae will pupate inside of the tree, and eventually emerge after pupating. At this point, the beetle will carry its offspring to another tree and start the process over again.

Are pine bark beetles native? 

Yes, unlike the Emerald Ash Borer, Pine Bark Beetles are native, but due to changes in climate and other unknown factors, they have been growing exponentially and are killing many more trees than they used to. This is a concerning factor that could result in the loss of many acres of pine trees. 

How does the Pine Bark beetle kill pine trees?

There are 2 mechanisms by which Pine Bark beetles kill pine trees. One is the consumption of the inner bark with will kill the pine tree on its own after a time. While one or 2 beetles may not be a big deal, 100s of little beetles eating the tree over years can take a devastating toll eventually killing the tree. But it gets worse, they also carry a fungus that grows in the holes they have dug. This fungus eventually clogs up the tree's ability to absorb nutrients and water. 

At the end of the day Pine Bark, beetles are a devastating beetle that is killing an overwhelming amount of pine trees in America. This infographic was made by ChemJet. Check out our lawn care blog for more great lawn care and landscaping information. 

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