Sixteen new colonies of "ST beetles" are now at home at Wolters Woods Park in Laketown Township.
These small, Japanese beetles are being deployed to fight the hemlock woolly adelgid—an invasive insect that sucks sap from hemlock needles and can kill trees in as little as four years.
Alex Miller, president of the West Michigan Wildlife Conservancy, says the beetles are the perfect solution because they co-evolved with the adelgid, creating a natural, permanent check on the invasive population.
Miller notes that the beetles are completely harmless to people, pets, and local wildlife.
Hikers may see small clumps of biodegradable material clipped to hemlock branches and are asked not to disturb them as that’s the beetles’ temporary home.
The project is funded by the Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission, which is working to protect hemlocks in areas like Sanctuary Woods and Huyser Farm.
Officials will monitor the trees over the coming year to track the beetles' progress in saving the woods.
For more on the Hemlock wooly agelgid:
HWA from MI:
https://www.michigan.gov/invasives/id-report/insects/hemlock-woolly-adelgid
HWA in Allegan County:
https://laketowntwp.org/watch-for-hemlock-woolly-adelgid-infestations/
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