Pine Wilt Disease

[Anchor Lead]

Pine wilt disease causes such great damage that neighboring trees may also even need to be cut down. A new way to prevent the spread of the tree disease has been developed.

[Pkg]

This forest is red, as if it is colored in autumn tints. In truth, they are withering pine trees infected with pine wilt disease, which is compared to AIDS for pine trees. Pine wilt disease is spread by Japanese pine sawyer beetles, which can fly up to three kilometers.

[Soundbite] Prf. Kim Dong-soon(Jeju National University) : "Japanese pine sawyer beetles eat nutrients flowing on tree bark. The pest gets into trees while eating, leading the trees to acute death."

A new method has been developed to kill the harmful beetle in its caterpillar form. The Korea National Arboretum has found an insect, which attacks caterpillars of Japanese pine sawyer beetles. The caterpillars of the insect suck up the body fluid of the beetles' caterpillars. So the beetles' caterpillars die before they become grownups.

[Soundbite] Kim Il-kwon(Researcher, Korea National Arboretum) : "We have found a parasite bee that attacks the caterpillars of Japanese pine sawyer beetles."

The Korea National Arboretum expects the use of the natural enemy to help reduce the number of the pine sawyer beetles and prevent the spread of pine wilt disease.