There’s a new pest in town and it’s threatening one of the area’s top crops: avocados. The six-legged Asian shot hole borer was first discovered in Los Angeles County in 2003 by Bob White of Bartlett Tree Experts. Primary research is now being done by Drs. Akif Eskalen and Richard Stouthamer of UC Riverside, with assistance from researchers at UC Santa Barbara in the Riparian InVasion Research Laboratory (RIVR lab).

Cross-published to Phys.org - Shot hole borers threatening Ventura County avocado orchards