Invasive Species

Subterranean termites (Family Rhinotermitidae) are considered the most serious wood-destroying pests in the world, causing an estimated $32 billion in global economic impact each year. California is home to both native and introduced subterranean termite species (Figure 1).

Residents in multiple Southern California and Northern California counties should not move homegrown fruits and vegetables from their properties to help contain several species of fruit fly that can destroy crops and impact the livelihoods of local farmers.

Eucalypt trees have become abundant in the California landscape, but so have the many invasive eucalypt pests that have arrived in California in the last couple decades.

Sudden oak death (SOD) is a disease syndrome that has killed millions of native oak trees (Figure 1) along the west coast of the United States, from Big Sur in California up to Southern Oregon.

Wildfires are part of California's ecosystems, and they do not have to lead to the destruction of structures and livelihoods. Each of us can contribute to improving wildfire resilience, from individual homeowners and businesses to entire communities.

The Invasive Pest Spotlight focuses on relevant or emerging invasive species in California. In this issue we are covering brooms, a group of invasive shrubs. Invasive Broom facts Brooms are upright shrubs in the legume family that typically produce small, yellow, pea-shaped flowers.

They may seem too tiny to do much damage to a mature, healthy tree, but invasive shothole borers (ISHB) are responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of trees in Southern California. These beetles bore into trees and infect them with Fusarium dieback, a fungal disease that kills the trees.

In the lottery of troublesome termite infestations, Roger, a Rancho Santa Fe homeowner, hit the jackpot (a pseudonym is used to protect his privacy).

The Formosan subterranean termite (FST), Coptotermes formosanus, is a very destructive pest first reported in California in 1992 in La Mesa, San Diego County. FST has since been found in Canyon Lake, Riverside County, Rancho Santa Fe (San Diego County) and Highland Park (Los Angeles County).

Although all cockroaches in California are considered pests, the Turkestan cockroach is of particular concern.