May is Invasive Species Month – Buy and Burn Locally

May is Invasive Species Action Month! Victoria long weekend officially launches the start of camping season! But the cozy campfire you build might have some hidden invasive critters – Many of the destructive invasive insects and tree diseases that have severely harmed our forests have been spread around by people moving firewood.

One species we really don’t want in BC is the Asian long-horned beetle, which is only found in Ontario and has been highly destructive particularly to hardwood tree species. As a wood-boring beetle, adult and larval life stages can damage trees, and female beetles lay their eggs directly into the tree wood.