#EmeraldAshBorers teach #students about #strong #trees. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/27/middle-school-students-help-make-breaktrough-discovery-concerning-emerald-ash-borer-343/

Middle school students from the Delaware City School District are currently on the verge of an amazing discovery. These students, all members of a summer ecology camp, are teaming up with lead scientists to find the source of resilience in a select number of trees to the emerald ash borer — an invasive insect responsible for the destruction of entire forests — specifically in the Dempsey Middle School wetlands.

MORE THAN JUST A SUMMER CAMP

21 students that have recently completed seventh or eighth grade were eager to learn more about botany and biology, enrolling in the middle school’s local ecology summer camp. Unlike most summer camps, instead of threading friendship bracelets and playing capture-the-flag, these students are directly involved in real-world science projects, using hands-on experience with forest and wetland ecology to better their understanding in the world around them.

Just last year, the club received an award from the Statewide Expanded Learning Summit for its impressive project-based method of learning and teaching, as well as for their use of STEM programming—a method of teaching encouraged by a coalition of educators seeking to get government officials to recognize how the practices of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics all play in the US.

INVESTIGATING THE EMERALD ASH BORER

The emerald ash borer is an exotic beetle first discovered in 2002, and is known nationwide by ecologists for its destructive habits. While adults do little to harm to trees, the baby larvae are known to feed on the inner bark of ash trees, and are responsible for killing millions of trees across the mid-eastern US, including states such as Michigan, Arkansas, Connecticut, and Delaware.

ON THE VERGE OF DISCOVERY

Teaming up with scientists from the US Forest Service Northern Research Station, students have found that the trees inhabiting the Dempsey Middle School wetlands to have a significantly higher resilience against the emerald green borer than the other 55 sites they visited. It is here that students are working closely with Katherine Knight, a scientist from the aforementioned research station, in order to discover the source of resilience among this population of trees.

Paul Olen, the head coordinator of the summer ecology club, says that the equally-resilient students are yet to be put off from working in less-than-comfortable conditions, including persistent insects and consistently horrible weather:

“They’ve been working in mud, heat and mosquito-infested area and they haven’t complained at all. We did some rigorous hiking in rough terrain while getting drenched with water. This was rough to me and I’ve been to Africa and Central America hiking, and they were able to handle it.”

Upon finally discovering the source of resilience in the wetlands of Delaware, these students hope to work with scientists in helping to preserve other areas infested with the emerald ash borer —“This is real science in the real world,” says Olen, “and our students are having a blast being a part of it.”

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Middle School Students Help Make Breaktrough Discovery Concerning Emerald Ash Borer

Pretty emerald ash borers are tree killers. What should you do? - http://clapway.com/2015/07/07/emerald-ash-borer-wont-win-tree-hugger-insect-of-the-year-123/

Reminding of a termite, the emerald ash borer (or EABf or short) is a pretty, little metallic-green beetle. Pretty as they are, the effect they have on ash trees aren’t quite as pretty.

First Appearance in New Jersey

Reports show that these tree toxins of insects have been found in Westhampton, New Jersey. First discovered in New Jersey in May of 2014, emerald ash borer infestations have been spreading like wildfire all about the U.S., reaching north into Canada. The aftermath includes the death of tens of millions of ash trees since the beginning of their spread, originating in Michigan in 2002. With all that tree disposal, U.S. and Canadian tree disposal professionals probably have their work cut out for them.

Burlington county’s governing officials have advised their official website provides useful information on recognizing emerald tree borers, reporting them and other helpful information.

What does a Emerald Tree Borer look like?

“Emerald ash borer is a fast-moving, highly destructive, invasive pest, which could lead to the death of ash trees,” New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. Fisher describes. The emerald ash borer may be just half an inch long, but it’s no joke. Officials are responding in any way they can to protect their backyards and trees.

Is any tree safe of these bores?

Emerald tree borers have by now, reached 25 states and two Canadian provinces — all regions with ash trees for these insects to lay their eggs. From the beginning of their young lives–as lavae–emerald treer borers start boring into the bark of the trees in which they hatch. They feed on the tree’s nutrients and depletes the tree of this. This is how ash trees are killed by these parasitic insects. The whole process takes about three to five years.

Protecting Trees from Emerald Ash Borers

In protecting local ash trees from destruction, it would really help if to note the signs of ash borer activity. Gary Johnson, an associate professor of Urban and Community Forestry at the University of Minnesota shared the following tips:

• If you notice increased woodpecker activity. They might be eating them, but it could also be the larvae of other tree-hatching insects.


• Thinning of the top of the tree that continues to the point of barrenness.


• D-shaped holes in the ash tree’s bark about 1/8 of an inch in size.

If you see one or signs of an emerald ash borer’s presence, help save your locales’ trees by contacting the Department of Agriculture at 609-406-6939.

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Emerald Ash Borer Won"t Win Tree Hugger Insect of the Year