Efforts to scout portions of northeast Iowa for the presence of emerald ash borer (EAB) have intensified following the submission of an EAB larva to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The larva was reportedly from Clayton County, however no additional EAB larvae have been found and no signs of infestation have been spotted in the immediate area.

As a result, an EAB infestation cannot yet be confirmed.

The EAB larva was reportedly found in a small sentinel tree at the Osborne Welcome and Nature Center in Clayton County. The tree was established by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources with funding from the U.S. Forest Service.

Officials from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, DNR and Iowa State University Extension have been conducting extensive scouting of the tree and around the Osborne Center this week.

The Osborne Center is located approximately five miles south of Elkader and approximately 60 miles southwest of where an EAB infestation was confirmed in Wisconsin in early April of this year.

Additional experts are returning to the area in the upcoming weeks to place traps in the immediate and surrounding area, during the next one-two weeks, to determine if an EAB infestation is present in the area.
The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is native to the Orient, and was introduced in the United States near Detroit, Mich. in the 1990s. EAB kills all ash species by larval burrowing under the bark and eating the actively growing layers of the trees.

. “We started our scouting efforts in the park where the larva was reportedly found and are spreading outwards. We have a five-mile radius grid that is going to be thoroughly investigated for any additional signs of EAB,” said Robin Pruisner, State Entomologist with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.

If an infestation is ultimately confirmed in Iowa, officials have a plan is in place to help stop the spread of EAB that would include a quarantine prohibiting the movement of hardwood firewood, ash nursery stock, ash timber or any other article that could spread EAB from infested areas.

Clayton County is one of the top producers of forest products in Iowa. The county has an estimated 66 million woodland trees and an estimated 6.6 million ash trees.