Interceptions of exotic insects on dunnage and wood packing material in Canada
In the major Canadian ports of entry, a survey was carried out in 1997 on the imports of wooden articles (dunnage and wood packing material). Interceptions of exotic pests have been made from the following commodities: wooden wire and cable spools from China, wooden crating with granite blocks from India and China, wooden boxes with metal valves from Italy, wooden pallets with ceramic tiles from Brazil.
The following insect species were found in wooden material associated with various commodities:
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Insect species found (dead or alive)
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Origin
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Commodity
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Anoplophora glabripennis
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China
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Wire rope
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Hylastes ater
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Spain
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Ceramic tiles
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Hylurgops palliatus
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Switzerland
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Metal flanges
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Ips cembrae (EU Annex II/B)
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China
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Iron castings
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Ips stebbingi
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China
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Stone blocks
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Ips typographus (EU Annex II/B)
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Italy
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Metal valves
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Lagocheirus sp.
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Costa Rica
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Lumber
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Lyctinae
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India
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Granite tiles
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Lymantriidae
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China
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Stone blocks
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Monochamus alternatus (EPPO A1 quarantine pest)
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China
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Wire rope
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Orthotomicus angulatus
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China
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Stone sculptures
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Pissodes sp.
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China
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Stone sculptures
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Rhagium inquisitor
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China
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Stone blocks
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Sinoxylon spp. (anale, conigerum, pugnax)
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India
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Granite tiles
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Sirex rufiabdominis
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China
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Arts and crafts
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Urocerus gigas gigas
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Switzerland
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Metal flanges
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In a separate study, 92 wooden spools (for wire rope) from China, Korea and Malaysia were disassembled and examined. It has been found that a simple visual inspection of the external parts is not sufficient to detect insects. The results showed that 82% of the spools had insect galleries, 20% had live or dead beetles, 90% of the spools still had bark present on the wood, 41% of the Chinese spools had insects in them. The Coleoptera species recovered from these wire rope spools in 1997 were the following (most of them were alive, and sometimes found in rather larger numbers): Batocera lineolata (China), Trichoferus campestris (China), Ceresium flavipes (China), Psacothea hilaris (China), Megopis sp. (probably M. sinica - China), Ptilineurus sp. (China). It is also recalled that Anoplophora glabripennis had been found in 1992 in a warehouse storing wire rope spools and that Monochamus alternatus (EPPO A1 quarantine pest) was observed in 1993 in spools (probably from China or Korea).
The conclusion is that dunnage and wooden packing material represent a significant risk of introducing exotic insects.
Sources
Allen, E.A. (1998) Exotic insect interceptions form wooden dunnage and packing material.
Canadian Forest Service Web site