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“Forest managers in western Virginia and Christmas tree growers throughout the State will be interested in learning more about a new insect pest of white pine recently discovered in western Virginia,” said C. L. Morris, Associate State Forester, Virginia Division of Forestry, Dept, of Conservation and Economic Development.
The introduced pine sawfly, although not new to the United States, is new to Virginia. It feeds primarily on our native eastern white pine, but also will defoliate other conifers including Scotch, red and Austrian pines.
The major reason for concern in Virginia is that in the southern Appalachians the insect has three successive hatches of feeding larvae each summer. This results in extensive defoliation and damage to the host trees.
Observations in western North Carolina, where the pest was discovered in 1977, show white pines suffering defoliation for the past two years have one-third of their tops killed. The larval (feeding) stage can be found from May through November. The larvae, when their feeding cycle is over, spin a tough brown cocoon. These cocoons can be found on twigs of the host trees and on surrounding vegetation, including grasses.
“The Virginia Division of Forestry will monitor the insect and will launch a biological control program,”
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