We Are Now in the EAB Flight Season
We Are Now in the EAB Flight Season
The EAB flight season started on June 1st and goes through October 1st and we wanted to remind you to follow the Slow the Spread Recommendations. During this time of year, EAB will be emerging from infested ash trees, logs, and firewood and seeking new host trees and mates. Moving ash during the flight season could spread EAB to currently non infested areas. There are more stringent recommendations for moving ash materials in the Slow the Spread Recommendations, including delaying harvesting, not moving untreated ash until after the flight season — October 1st — and for receiving processors to treat ash within one business day of receiving the material. Slowing the spread of EAB requires all of us to work together and will allow all of us more time to prepare and respond.
Updated EAB Infested Area Map Features
We are excited to announce that we’ve made updates to the EAB Infested Area Map to provide more information on the severity of the infestations. This new map still has a 10-mile radius around a known ‘Infested Area’, but it no longer delineates a 5-mile ‘Confirmed Infested Area’ as it did previously. Instead, it shows a gradient of the severity of the infestation within the 10-mile radius. The goal of providing this information is to assist Vermonters in understanding the EAB infestation severity across the state to manage their ash trees in a timely manner. This new map also highlights that there is still a lot of EAB spread to slow. While the Infested Area Map shows that high-risk areas for EAB include many towns, visibly infested trees are still rare in Vermont. You can help by following the “Slow-the-Spread” recommendations.
When looking at the map, the infestation severity is represented by the red to yellow coloring of the infested area.
- Lighter, yellow in color infested area indicates a less severe infestation. Lower severity infested areas are not yet showing signs of infestation or decline, but EAB has been found within 10 miles.
- Darker, red in color infested area indicates a more severe infestation, multiple detections of EAB in close proximity, or both. Higher severity infested areas exhibit visible ash tree symptoms or tree death.
The severity of each infested area will be assessed annually by staff from the Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation and the map will be updated as needed. The new shaded EAB Infested Area Map is also available through ANR’s Natural Resources Atlas. The Atlas allows for interactive mapping functions so you can look at the infested area in conjunction with other layers such as parcels or roads, transfer stations, and composting facilities, along with the details associated with each infestation, including the year of detection, infestation severity, and the last time the site was evaluated.
Report It?
If you think you found EAB or an infested tree, report it! The more information we have about where EAB is will help all of us in managing the pest.
Managing Ash
Questions about managing ash in your woodlot, around your home, or in your community? Check out the resources available at VTinvasives.org.