Native or Invasive? The Red-Haired Pine Bark Beetle Hylurgus ligniperda (Fabricius) (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in East Asia
Wei Lin, Sangwook Park, Zi‐Ru Jiang, Yingchao Ji, A. Simon Ernstsons, Junjun Li, You Li, Jiří Hulcr
Abstract
The red-haired pine bark beetle, Hylurgus ligniperda (Fabricius), is one of the most rapidly spreading invasive forest insects. Originally from Eurasia, it has subsequently been introduced to Oceania, North, and South America. Yet, the status of H. ligniperda in East Asia is ambiguous. Here, investigation and analysis were conducted on the beetle in China, South Korea, and Japan. New occurrences in China and South Korea were recorded by field surveys and the expansion of H. ligniperda spreading in East Asia was analyzed. The results show that H. ligniperda is likely an invasive species in East Asia, initially invading Japan, then South Korea. Now it has invaded and successfully colonized Shandong province, China. Furthermore, the species has spread rapidly and it is now widely distributed in South Korea and Japan.