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Measuring just two millimeters, the tiny auger can kill a tree in two years.
At least 3,000 trees in Perth have already been destroyed in an attempt to stop this pest.
By creating tunnels through trunks and branches, they infect trees with a fungus that blocks the transfer of water and nutrients.
Associate Professor Theo Evans, from the University of Western Australia, studies insect behavior and genetics.
“It’s about 1-2 millimeters big, it’s like a sesame seed. It attacks trees and eats wood, not directly but it has a fungus. The fungus attacks the wood and then the beetle attacks the fungus, and it can attack and kill hundreds of tree species.”
Concerns have also been raised within the community.
“Urban heat load is a huge, huge problem that we’re dealing with, with climate change. And then now we have trees that are being affected. I don’t think we have a clear understanding of which trees are being affected. It has an impact flowers and trees that give you honey and shade and all sorts of trouble.”
Native to Southeast Asia, cockroaches were first detected in Western Australia in 2021.
Authorities say it is unknown how the beetle entered Australia.
Both the federal and state governments have allocated funds for a beetle eradication plan, with $20 million from the Albanian government and $4.7 million from the state government.
More than 160 full-time local employees are helping to implement the plan, which includes removing infected trees to stop the spread.
The invasive pest was previously thought to be contained in the Perth metropolitan area.
But now it has been found in elderberry and coral trees outside the quarantine zone.
Vincent Lanoiselet is the plant biosecurity manager for the WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
“Twelve trees were found to be infested with the borer outside the quarantine area. The good news is that the infestations are not very far from the border or edges of the quarantine area, and the detection was also identified as part of a ‘normal surveillance surveillance. We basically work a lot at the edge of the quarantine area to make sure that if the pest manages to escape from the quarantine area, we can detect it very quickly and very quickly to remove the infestation.’
He says unfortunately there are no chemical controls available to eliminate this pest.
They are working with international researchers who have more than 20 years of experience operating the drilling rig to find a collaborative solution.
The good news is that the infestation is not very far from the border or edges of the area. And the detections were also identified as part of normal surveillance. We basically work a lot at the edge of the quarantine area to make sure that if the pest manages to escape the quarantine area, we can detect it very quickly and act very quickly to remove the infestation.”
Associate Professor Theo Evans believes there may be another way the cockroach is spreading in Perth.
“So if people prune their trees, maybe they have a branch near a power line. They cut the branch and take it away to be disposed of. And that might mean taking it out of the quarantine zone.”
He says the beetle can still spread even after an infected tree is destroyed, as parts of the tree are turned into chips and then into mulch, which could then be transported and used in other locations.
“It’s very worrying. It’s bad in Perth. Perth already has very low canopy and we’re going to lose even more. But if you live in Sydney, Brisbane or Melbourne it could be worse. The cockroach is probably better suited to living on the eastern coast because it is wetter; and it also attacks figs. And figs are more prominent in the urban canopy of Brisbane and Sydney and it attacks London plane trees, which are very common in Melbourne, so they may lose 50% or more of their urban cover .”
Authorities now fear the little beetle could spread to the East Coast.
They are urging the public to check the trees and report any sightings.
With the spring breeding season fast approaching, scientists are in a race against time to eradicate the beetle.
New warning signs are being put up across Perth and the quarantine boundary is being reviewed.