First records and reproductions of the Asian longhorned beetle Anoplophora glabripennis (Motschulsky) (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae) in Switzerland

Abstract

the Asian longhorned beetle <I>Anoplophora glabripennis</I> (Motschulsky. 1853) is an invasive, treekilling species native to East Asia, which was introduced to North America in 1996 and to Europe in 2001. In 2011, the first findings of 4 living adult beetles as well as numerous egg depositions in maples (<I>Acer pseudoplatanus</I>) were documented in a village in Canton Freiburg. In 2012, a mass infestation, mostly of maples, was detected in the city of Winterthur (Canton Zurich). Approximately 150 adult beetles, numerous larvae and new ovipositions were recorded on around 120 infested trees. In both years, several additional incidences of dead beetles and living larvae were detected on pallets with Chinese granite curbstones at Rhine ports near Basel and some inland construction sites. The Winterthur population probably represented the third generation after the first infestation, which most likely occurred six years ago. and the unnoticed emergence of two generations two and four years later. Control measures include the felling of infested trees and meticulously checking for infestation signs on nearby potential host trees, assisted by trained sniffer dogs. The species most frequently mistaken for <I>A. glabripennis</I>, because they look alike, are presented.