Pest categorisation of Arrhenodes minutus

Abstract

The Panel on Plant Health performed a pest categorisation of Arrhenodes minutus, a well-defined wood-boring insect species in the family Brentidae (Insecta: Coleoptera). It can be identified using taxonomic keys. A. minutus is only present in southern Canada and eastern USA down to Florida. The main host plants of A. minutus are species of the genera Quercus, Ulmus, Fagus and Populus. The pest larvae bore galleries in the wood, causing structural damage to the timber. The pest is also a vector of the quarantine pest Breziella (Ceratocystis) fagacearum. A. minutus most often lays its eggs in wounded parts of the trees where sap is oozing. The female bores minute holes with her snout and deposits one egg in each of them. The larvae bore a straight gallery against the grain. When the gallery nearly reaches the other side of the bole, it makes a sharp U-turn towards the point of origin. These galleries cause structural damage to the timber. The life cycle lasts generally 3 years, but some individuals develop in 2 years and a few require 4 years. The main pathways are wood and possibly plants for planting. Specific phytosanitary requirements exist for Quercus and Populus only, while Ulmus is regulated in relation to other pests. Establishment would be favoured by the wide distribution of host trees in the EU territory and by climatic conditions locally comparable to those of the pest’s native range. A. minutus meets all the criteria assessed by EFSA for consideration as potential Union quarantine pest. The criteria for considering it as a potential Union regulated non-quarantine pest are not met since the species is absent from the EU.