The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development recently found invasive hemlock woolly adelgid near Torch Lake in western Antrim County.
Antrim is now the seventh county in the state with an active hemlock woolly adelgid infestation, including Allegan, Benzie, Mason, Muskegon, Oceana, Ottawa and Washtenaw County.
“The new infestation was found by a landowner who learned about the hemlock woolly adelgid while attending an educational outreach event held by the Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area that serves Charlevoix, Antrim, Kalkaska, and Emmet Counties,” said Steve Carlson, MDARD’s Pesticide and Plant Pest Management Division Director. “Situations like this demonstrate the importance of public awareness in our fight against invasive species.”
Hemlock woolly adelgids are small insects that extract sap from hemlock trees. Without treatment, infested trees die within four to 10 years. Hemlock woolly adelgid can be identified by looking on the undersides of hemlock branches for what look like balls of spun cotton, alone or in clusters.
“[A] really concerning part is how far it skipped. It was a little weird when we had Benzie County. We haven’t found any hemlock woolly adelgid in Manistee County. It’s just over the line in Mason County...but now we have this giant leap up to Antrim County. So that’s another kind of concerning part, trying to figure out how it got up there and if it’s anywhere else along the trail,” said Audrey Menninga, Invasive Species Network coordinator.
You can report a suspect infestation by:
- Emailing MDARD at MDA-Info@michigan.gov or calling the Customer Service Center at 800-292-3939.
- Using the Midwest Invasive Species Information Network (MISIN) online reporting tool or downloading the MISIN smartphone app and reporting from your phone.
Please report the exact location of infested trees and take pictures if possible. Do not collect samples from the tree to avoid spreading hemlock woolly adelgid.
