A tree-killing invasive insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid
(HWA), was found for the first time in Indiana on a landscape
tree in LaPorte County in mid-April. Since its introduction to
the Eastern United States in the mid-1920s, the HWA has infested
about half the native range of Eastern hemlock. In certain areas
of the Great Smoky Mountains, as many as 80 percent of the
hemlocks have died due to infestation. The finding of the tiny
aphid-like insect, which destroys native hemlocks by feeding on
the tree sap at the base of the needles, was confirmed by the
USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The insect
was identified on a single hemlock as a result of a homeowner’s
report. The infested tree may have originated from a landscape
planting in Michigan and been brought into Indiana about five
years ago. Preliminary searches have revealed no other infested
trees in the area, but an extensive survey is underway.
“Fortunately, this find occurred outside of the native range of
hemlock trees in Indiana,