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Anoplophora glabripennis

By Laurie Johnson

Geographic Range

Anoplophora glabripennis are indigenous to China and Korea. Between 1994 and 1996 they were introduced to the greater areas of New York and Chicago through commercial trade. Today, these beetles are found throughout warehouses in Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. (Smith, et al., December 2001)

Habitat

Asian long-horned beetles inhabit areas with hardwood (warehouses) and hardwood forests. They are found terrestrially throughout temperate zones of Eastern Asia and parts of the United States living in various species of hardwood trees. (Smith, et al., December 2001)

Physical Description

Adult Anoplophora glabripennis are between 20 and 35 mm long, and 7 and 12 mm wide. Their bodies are glossy black with approximately 20 white spots on each wing cover. The antennae of male beetles are 1.5 times as long as their bodies, and the antennae of female beetles are 1.3 times as long as their bodies. The antennae of both sexes are striped black and white. The upper sections of the legs of the adults are whitish-blue. Anoplophora glabripennis can be distinguished from related species by the markings on the wing covers and the pattern of the antennae.

Larvae can reach to 50 mm in length. They are elongated and cylindrical in shape, pale in color and have a varied texture on the underside. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Frank, February 2001; Smith, et al., December 2001)

  • Sexual Dimorphism
  • sexes shaped differently
  • Range length
    20 to 35 mm
    0.79 to 1.38 in

Development

Anoplophora glabripennis require between one and two years to completely develop from an egg to an adult. After mating in late summer, the females chew grooves in the bark of the host tree and lay a single egg in each groove. They then secrete a substance that hardens over and protects the egg. After about eleven days, the larvae hatch and begin to eat their way deeper into the tree. Larvae spend the winter feeding on the heartwood of the tree. Larvae then hollow out a chamber and pupate for 13-24 days, tunneling their way out of the tree as adults. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Milius, June 12, 1999)

Reproduction

Male beetles participate in mate guarding, often staying for hours after copulation to prevent the female from mating again with other males. Females may mate with a single male multiple times or with multiple males. (Smith, et al., December 2001)

Adult asian long-horned beetles are capable of mating as soon as they emerge from the host tree. Mating takes place on the branches and trunks of host trees between 12:00 PM and 6:00 PM. The female beetle lays an average of 32 eggs, one at a time, over an 11 day period. The eggs hatch in another 11 days. Over their lifetime, females produce between 30 and 80 eggs. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Milius, June 12, 1999; Smith, et al., December 2001)

  • Range eggs per season
    30 to 80
  • Parental Investment
  • no parental involvement

Lifespan/Longevity

In the wild, Asian Long-Horned Beetles require between one to three years to reach maturity. The adult lifespan is about 50 days for males and 66 days for females. The lifespan of A. glabripennis in captivity is not known. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Smith, et al., December 2001)

  • Average lifespan
    Status: wild
    55-66 days

Behavior

Juvenile Anoplophora glabripennis are solitary organisms maintaining themselves completely within the host tree. Adults are diurnal with peak activity occurring between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM. Activity is also higher on warmer and/or sunnier days than cloudy and/or cold days. At most, adults can fly up to 1200 meters but generally fly no more than 75 meters. Males are often very territorial and clip each other's antennae or legs during disputes. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Milius, June 12, 1999)

Communication and Perception

Food Habits

Adult Anoplophora glabripennis are herbivorous feeding on leaves, twigs, and other plant matter. In their native habitat juvenile A. glabripennis feed on the healthy bark, phloem, and xylem of more than 24 species of hardwood trees, particulary species of poplar. In the United States, the beetles feed on birch, chestnut, green ash, maple, and a variety of other trees. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Smith, et al., December 2001)

  • Primary Diet
  • herbivore
    • lignivore
    • eats sap or other plant foods
  • Plant Foods
  • wood, bark, or stems
  • sap or other plant fluids

Predation

Aside from being able to fly away from predators, asian long-horned beetles do not have any documented anti-predator adaptions. (Smith, June 1999)

  • Known Predators
    • cylindrical bark beetle Aulonuim
    • clerid beetle Thanasimus dubius
    • Click beetle
    • robber fly Megaphorus willistoni
    • assassin bug Zelus bilobus
    • ambush bug Phymata fasciatus
    • Carpenter Ant Camponotus
    • Braconid wasps Braconidae
    • Ichneumonid wasps Ichneumonidae
    • Nematodes
    • Woodpeckers
    • Beauveria bassiana (fungus)

Ecosystem Roles

Asian long-horned beetles are detrimental to any ecosystem they inhabit. In China, approximately 40% of poplar plantations have been damaged, meaning the wood is good only for packing material. In the Ningxia Province of China, more than 50 million trees were destroyed over a three-year period because of the beetles. These beetles have the ability to significantly alter the composition of North American hardwood forests. It is estimated that between nearly one-third of all trees would have to be destroyed in the United States if A. glabripennis were to spread throughout the country. The potential for widespread distribution in North America and the attack of a wide range of host trees is also very possible. (Cavey, February 8, 2000; Nowak, et al., 2001; Smith, June 1999)

Species Used as Host
  • various species of trees particularly poplars and maples

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

Econimic benefits derived from asian long-horned beetles have not yet been discovered.

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

The economic effects of asian long-horned beetles in their native environment are not documented. In the United States, A. glabripennis have the potential to significantly impact industries such as maple syrup, timber, and nursery. Every tree that is found to have been infested by beetles must be destroyed in order to prevent the further spread of A. glabripennis. As of the summer of 2000, more than 4,000 trees were removed in New York, and another 1,400 were destroyed in the Chicago area. This resulted in total costs of more than $25 million dollars for both cities. It has been estimated that if the A. glabripennis infestation is not curbed in the United States, it could result in a total national cost of $669 billion. The beetle has already had an impact on the shipping industry. All cargo leaving China and Hong Kong in wooden pallets must undergo inspections before exiting the port, which increases the price of shipping. Wooden pallets were the method by which Asian Long-Horned Beetles entered the United States. (Nowak, et al., 2001)

  • Negative Impacts
  • crop pest

Conservation Status

There are currently no measures being taken to conserve this species.

Other Comments

Anoplophora glabripennis is also known as Anoplophora nobilis. (Smith, et al., December 2001)

Contributors

Sara Diamond (editor), Animal Diversity Web.

Laurie Johnson (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Kerry Yurewicz (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

Glossary

Nearctic

living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.

World Map

Palearctic

living in the northern part of the Old World. In otherwords, Europe and Asia and northern Africa.

World Map

agricultural

living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.

bilateral symmetry

having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.

biodegradation

helps break down and decompose dead plants and/or animals

chemical

uses smells or other chemicals to communicate

diurnal
  1. active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
ectothermic

animals which must use heat acquired from the environment and behavioral adaptations to regulate body temperature

fertilization

union of egg and spermatozoan

forest

forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.

herbivore

An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.

heterothermic

having a body temperature that fluctuates with that of the immediate environment; having no mechanism or a poorly developed mechanism for regulating internal body temperature.

internal fertilization

fertilization takes place within the female's body

introduced

referring to animal species that have been transported to and established populations in regions outside of their natural range, usually through human action.

metamorphosis

A large change in the shape or structure of an animal that happens as the animal grows. In insects, "incomplete metamorphosis" is when young animals are similar to adults and change gradually into the adult form, and "complete metamorphosis" is when there is a profound change between larval and adult forms. Butterflies have complete metamorphosis, grasshoppers have incomplete metamorphosis.

motile

having the capacity to move from one place to another.

native range

the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.

oviparous

reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.

parasite

an organism that obtains nutrients from other organisms in a harmful way that doesn't cause immediate death

pheromones

chemicals released into air or water that are detected by and responded to by other animals of the same species

polyandrous

Referring to a mating system in which a female mates with several males during one breeding season (compare polygynous).

sexual

reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female

solitary

lives alone

suburban

living in residential areas on the outskirts of large cities or towns.

temperate

that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).

terrestrial

Living on the ground.

territorial

defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement

urban

living in cities and large towns, landscapes dominated by human structures and activity.

visual

uses sight to communicate

References

Cavey, J. February 8, 2000. "*Anoplophora glabripennis* (Motschulsky)" (On-line). Accessed March 19, 2002 at http://www.exoticforestpests.org/english/Detail.CFM?tblEntry__PestID=53.

Frank, P. February 2001. The Asian longhorned beetle. New York State Conservationist, Vol. 55, No. 4: 19-21.

Milius, S. June 12, 1999. Son of Long-Horned Beetles. Science News, Vol. 155, No. 24: 380.

Nowak, D., J. Pasek, R. Sequeira, D. Crane, V. Mastro. 2001. Potential Effect of *Anoplophora glabripennis* (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) on Urban Trees in the United States. Journal of Economic Entomology, 94(1): 116-122.

Smith, M. "Global Invasive Species Database, *Anoplophora glabripennis* (land invertebrate)" (On-line). Accessed March 22, 2002 at http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=111&fr=1&sts=.

Smith, M. June 1999. "The Potential For Biological Control of Asian Longhorned Beetle in the U.S." (On-line). Accessed March 20, 2002 at http://www.entomology.wisc.edu/mbcn/fea606.html.

Smith, M., J. Bancroft, G. Li, R. Gao, S. Teale. December 2001. Dispersal of *Anoplophora glabripennis* (Cerambycidae). Environmental Entomology, Vol. 30, No. 6: 1036-1040.

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