N.B. scientists use special bait to lure beetles

New Brunswick scientists are using specially designed traps, baited with chemical compounds to lure long-horn beetles in the hope of saving forests from being destroyed by the insects.

Reginald Webster, a private entomologist, has spread roughly 175 of the special funnel traps in four sites in New Brunswick.

Webster is working with Jon Sweeney, a research scientist with the Canadian Forest Service, to find what bait attracts the most beetles.

The scientists are testing different compounds and mixtures, including pheromones chemicals emitted by beetles to attract other beetles and scents from trees. The solution kills and preserves the beetles.

The idea is to find the best beetle bait with the hope that if it lures long-horn beetles, it will also work on their relatives.

Sweeney said ideally they want to keep invasive species of beetles out but that doesn't always work. So, the next step is to try and lure unwanted beetles to these traps.

"If you can't keep them out, the best thing is to find them as soon as you can. So, it's an early-detection thing," Sweeney said.

"So, the more sensitive an attractant, the more able it is to find in the area. You have to find it quickly."

The work being done in New Brunswick is part of a larger study. Scientists are also catching beetles in British Columbia, Russia, China and Poland.

Asian long-horn beetles and brown spruce long-horn beetles have been very destructive to trees in cities such as Halifax and Toronto.

Canadian Forest Service scientists first identified the insect in 1999 in Point Pleasant Park. It has since been discovered in six counties in central Nova Scotia. This is the only known infestation in North America, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency website.

2 new beetle species discovered

Along with trying ways to trap beetles this summer, Webster has found two species of long-horn beetles that have never been documented before in the Maritimes.

Webster aims to document all the species of beetles he finds in the province and the two recent discoveries are a welcome addition to his collection.

"They may be small, but they may have an impact on the environment," Webster said.

"For me, it's beetles and insects. I wish there were more of us around because my life is not long enough. I can't do what needs to be done here."