METACOMET
L A N D ▫ T R U S T
“Land through the Lens”

Metacomet Land Trust’s 1st Annual Photo Contest. Celebrate the four seasons in New England with our first photo contest open to amateur photographers of all ages! Click here for more information.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Metacomet Land Trust is working with the New England Wildflower Society to survey our two largest properties and develop an Invasive Species Management Plan for each location. This work has been made possible thanks to a grant from the Western Massachusetts Land Trust Program coordinated by the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition.

In May, we offered a one day training course for volunteers.

As we continue with our Invasive Species Management Plan development for the Boria (Sutton) and Daniels Farm (Blackstone) properties, please note the following dates where we will be conducting field work to identify invasives :

Saturday, July 11 Sutton

Sunday, July 19, Blackstone

Sunday, July 26, Sutton

Saturday, August 22, Blackstone

Each survey trip will take place in the morning. Directions will be sent to all volunteers.

Sign up for our email list to be notified of this and other events!

If you did not attend the workshop but feel confident that you could help out,

please contact Lisa Mosczynski, MLT President. Further details to come.

______________________________________________________________________________

Asian Longhorned Beetle Alert

In August of 2008 a colony of the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) was discovered in Worcester. The beetle is native to China and likely arrived as a stowaway in packing materials about 10 years ago. Surveys are currently underway to determine the extent of the infestation. As of mid November, 2008 more than 2500 infested trees have been identified in Worcester. More information about the ALB can be found at the University of Vermont ALB website or the City of Worcester ALB webpage.

Larvae of the beetle feed on hardwoods. Maples are most susceptible but it also feeds on willows, aspen, birch, ash, elm, and other hardwoods. ALB are not known to feed on oak or pine.

The beetle is large - about 0.75-1.25 inches long with very long black and white antennae. The body is glossy black with irregular white spots.

Signs of infestation include pencil sized diameter holes in the trunk, oozing sap, sawdust deposits, and wilting leaves. See Fact Sheet for photograhs of typical damage.

The current area of concern includes all of Worcester, and parts of Shrewsbury, Holden, Boylston and West Boylston. However, all in Central Massachusetts should be on guard.

ALB larvae can be transported in firewood. If you have purchased or imported any firewood from Worcester in the last several years, it would be prudent to check trees near where the wood was stored for signs of a beetle infestation.

If you see a suspected ALB, capture it in a jar and put it in the freezer for 24 hours to kill it. It is important that the beetle be properly identified because there are native beetles (including the pine sawyer beetle) with similar characteristics.

Report any sightings to the Worcester Regional Field Office of the USDA, 508-799-8330 or the Massachusetts Plant Pest Hotline at 617-626-1779. Sightings can also be reported on-line here.