Black spruce barbel - coniferous forest pest

Barbel or lumberjack is one of the most numerous families of beetles. Their characteristic feature is the presence of segmented whiskers that are longer than the body size of the insect. Black spruce barbel is a small beetle that lives in coniferous forests. It belongs to the biological group of forest pests. Adults eat young branches of trees, and larvae gnaw through numerous passages in them. From their impact, living trees die, and lumber lose their quality, become unsuitable for construction work.

Botanical description of the species

Black spruce barbel is a species belonging to the genus of black barbel (Monochamus). The imago is characterized by an elongated body of a dark color. The head is large, the mandibles (jaws) are well developed. Antennae thin, long, composed of many segments. Elytra slightly narrowed towards the end. Usually they are rounded, without sharp protrusions and spikes. The front legs of the males are much longer than the hind legs.

Information. The lifestyle associated with trees gave the second name for barbel - lumberjacks.

Spruce barbel can be of two types:

1. Small black spruce barbel (Monochamus sutor) is a coleopteran insect measuring 14-28 mm in size. The body is flat, elytra is cylindrical in shape. The mustache of males exceeds the body length by 2.5 times, in females - by 1.5 times. The shield is divided by a smooth strip. The life cycle is two years. The favorite feed plant of the larvae is European spruce. Years of imago from June to September. The larva is large, white, with strong jaws. Her head is drowned in the prothorax. The larva is 35-40 mm long. A distinctive feature of the species is the choice of trees in the valleys and on the southern slopes. On felled wood and lumber, settles in well-lit places. Insects cause significant physiological and technical damage.
2. Large black spruce barbel (Monochamus sartor) - slightly exceeds the size of its close relative. The length of his body is 15-37 mm. A flattened body has a slight brown tint. Female and male can be distinguished visually. In elytra, males have a transverse indentation, covered with a greenish-colored dotted line. In females, elytra has hairy spots of white and yellow. The length of the mustache is another characteristic indicator. In males, they are twice as large as the body, and in females, they slightly protrude beyond the elytra. The larva is 55 mm long. Beetles for habitation choose mountainous terrain, clearings and windbreaks.

Parasitic organisms

On black barbel nematodes are often parasitic. Before the appearance of adults from the pupa, the worms settle on the external and internal organs of the beetles, mainly concentrating in the spiracles.

Life cycle

The development of the beetle takes 2 years, in adverse conditions it can drag on 3. The first barbel appears in May, but the main years fall in June. Before laying eggs, they need additional nutrition on young twigs and needles. A fertilized female makes incisions in the cortex, into which she puts white oblong eggs. Young larvae begin the construction of passages in the cortex. By autumn, they go deep into a tree trunk. The larva is white, legless, moves with the help of warts on the first 7 segments of the abdomen. In a special recess paved with sawdust, the larva pupates.A young beetle is selected from the trunk through an opening in the cortex.

Distribution area

Insects are found throughout Europe, in Siberia, Mongolia, Japan and Korea. The western border of distribution is Finland, Sweden. Baltic States, southern - Caucasus, eastern - Sakhalin, Kamchatka. Black barbel is inhabited by coniferous and mixed forests, where spruce and fir prevail.

Related species Monochamus urussovi

The Eurasian species of barbel is similar in appearance to its counterparts living on spruce. Beetles lives on pine trees, but prefers fir. The species is widespread in the dark coniferous forests of Russia, in the north of Asia and Europe. The eastern border of distribution reaches Korea and Japan. The black fir barbel reaches the sizes of 18-37 mm. The color of the body, legs and antennae is black. Females have white hairs on elytra. It differs from other members of the family in several ways:

• an indented groove at the end of the elytra;
• light hairs on apex of elytra;
• granular puncture of the base of the elytra;
• granular antennae of a male.

The larvae of spruce and fir black barbel are similar to each other. They gnaw deep passages, and sawdust are thrown out through the holes.

Malicious actions and control measures

Changing weather conditions, disasters and cataclysms make it impossible to regulate the number of harmful bugs. Large and small spruce barbel feel great in places that have suffered a fire or attack of caterpillars of the Siberian silkworm. Among the measures that can reduce the number of harmful insects, the following can be noted:

• The use of natural enemies of woodcutter beetles - birds (woodpeckers, swallows).
• Timely sanitary felling of weak trees.
• Preparation of hunting trees - special trunks of spruce or fir, on which larvae are attracted, and then destroyed before being buried in the wood.
• With severe infection of the forest area, insecticides are used that contribute to the destruction of insect pests.
• Fast processing and proper storage of lumber. It is impossible to leave unrooted trunks on clearings for a long time.

Attention. As a preventive measure, wood and freight transport are chemically treated.

Harm from woodcutter beetles

In addition to personal extermination of the forest, beetles are distributors of wood nematodes. These are parasitic plant-eating worms. They feed on the sap of the trees, causing yellowing of the needles, the death of branches and trunk. The annual loss of timber is millions of cubic meters.

Attention. Large black spruce barbel belongs to quarantine objects.

The presence of dangerous beetles can be determined by the characteristic signs: notches, drill flour, larvae. Having noticed insects, it is necessary to report them to the pest control service.