WHAT TREE SPECIES DOES THE MOUNTAIN PINE BEETLE ATTACK?
The most common host in the Black Hills is ponderosa pine. This tree occurs on more than 1 million acres of forestland in western South Dakota. Ponderosa pine is also extensively planted in shelterbelts and landscapes. Ponderosa pine can be separated from other pines by its bundles of needles in twos and threes (most other pine trees will have needles in bundles of only two or only three). The needles are typically 5 to 11 inches long. Lodgepole, sugar and western white pine, though far more common in western states, are also susceptible wherever they are found. The pines we frequently use in the ornamental landscape, Scots (Scotch) and Austrian pine, are generally not hosts due to their smaller size and distance from mountain pine beetle infestations. However, these trees are highly susceptible to attack and large trees near infestations are vulnerable. Spruce, fir or Douglas-firs may be attacked if in the vicinity of infestations but these attacks are rarely successful. WHY IS THERE
