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Mountain Pine Beetle Sign

Parks Canada bilingual interpretive sign about Dendroctonus ponderosae

Mountain Pine Beetle interpretive sign
Mountain Pine Beetle interpretive sign Contributed September 2021

Inscription

MOUNTAIN PINE BEETLE Dendroctonus ponderosae The small mountain pine beetle is destructive far beyond its size. Adult beetles lay their eggs under the bark of pine trees in late summer. The larvae that emerge from the eggs spend the winter feeding on the tree and emerge as adults the following summer. DENDROCTONE DU PIN PONDEROSA Dendroctonus ponderosae Le petit dendroctone du pin ponderosa est beaucoup plus destructeur que ne laisse supposer sa taille. Les insectes adultes pondent leurs œufs sous l'écorce des pins à la fin de l'été. Les larves qui émergent des oeufs passent l'hiver à se nourrir de l'arbre et émergent en tant qu'adultes l'été suivant. 4 to 7mm (0.16 to 0.26in.) 4 à 7 mm (0,16 à 0,26 po) THE FUTURE Warm, dry summers and mild winters associated with climate change have enabled the beetles to survive at higher and higher elevations in the mountains. The range of the beetle has expanded every year since 2000 despite several cold winters. THE ATTACK The beetle transmits a fungus that prevents the tree from producing sap; its natural defence against invaders like the beetle. L'ATTAQUE L'insecte dépose un champignon qui empêche l'arbre de produire de la sève, sa défense naturelle contre les envahisseurs comme le dendroctone. THE DAMAGE The pine tree begins to dry out immediately and it turns red by the following summer, by which time new adult beetles have moved on to other trees and the cycle starts over. LES DOMMAGES Le pin commence à s'assécher immédiatement et devient rouge avant l'été suivant. Entre-temps, les dendroctones adultes se sont installés sur d'autres arbres et le cycle recommence. L'AVENIR Les étés chauds et secs et les hivers doux associés au changement climatique ont permis à ce coléoptère de survivre à des élévations de plus en plus élevées dans les montagnes. Son aire de répartition s'est étendue chaque année depuis 2000, malgré plusieurs hivers froids. Image above: Erich G. Vallery, [UNVERIFIABLE: text here was too faint for either engine to read with confidence] USDA Forest Services- SRS-4552, Bugwood.org Vallery, USDA Forest Services- [UNVERIFIABLE: 1 short fragment elsewhere on this sign could not be corroborated and is not shown]

Machine-transcribed from photo · not yet human-verified · may be incomplete

Record

Marker type
Sign
Current condition
Good, as of the 2021 survey
Location
Mountain Pine Beetle Viewpoint — Jasper National Park, Alberta
Added to the archive
January 25, 2026

Bilingual Parks Canada interpretive sign explaining the Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) and its role in western North American pine forest ecosystems.