Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle

(Click on an image below to see the captioned full-size version)
Figure 1		Figure 2		Figure 3		Figure 4		Figure 5		Figure 6
Figure 7		Figure 8

Scientific Name: Callidiellum rufipenne
Common Name: Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle, Cedar Longhorned Beetle, Smaller Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle, Lesser Cedar Longicorn Beetle

Known Hosts:
In Asia the Japanese cedar longhorned beetle is considered a secondary pest attacking stressed and freshly cut conifers. Known Asian hosts include Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), Hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa), Sawara cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera), false arborvitae (Thujopsis dolabrata), firs (Abies spp.) and pine (Pinus spp.).

In Connecticut this beetle has been observed in healthy American arborvitae plants (Figure 1). In its introduced range in the United States and Europe, hosts include eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), American arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis), juniper (Juniperus communis), and Monterey cypress (Cupressus macrocarpa).

Key ID Features (Adults, Larvae, Eggs):
	Adults emerge from the host in early spring (Figure 2). They are 1/4 to 1/2 inch (6-14mm) in length with a slightly flattened body. Adult beetles are often found at the base of the crotch where two branches meet.
	Male have antennae that are slightly longer than their body. They are an irridescent blue-black color with reddish areas on the upper corners of the wing covers (elytra). Female have shorter antennae, reddish-brown elytra, and an orange-red abdomen. (Figure 3)
	Females lay small (1.4 mm), yellowish eggs in bark crevices in spring.
	Larvae feed within the stems forming shallow, serpentine galleries just beneath the bark. (Figure 4)
	The beetle pupates in the fall and overwinters as an adult inside the host. (Figure 5)

Description of damage:
	Small oval exit holes (less than 0.25 inch) are created by adults exiting the wood in the spring. (Figure 6)
	Puckering incisions along the bark result from larval mining. Frass can be seen in openings to the tunnels. (Figures 7 and 8)

Similar species or symptoms:
See the USDA/APHIS Pest Alert for a description of the closely related genus Semanotus:
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/cphst/npag/downloads/Semanotus-bifasciatus.pdf

Fact sheets and references:
Cooperative Pest Agricultural Survey:Links to resources, maps, and articles on Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle
http://pest.ceris.purdue.edu/pest.php?code=INALQHA

Factsheet for Japanese cedar longhorned beetle: Michigan State University.
http://ipm.uconn.edu/documents/raw2/Smaller%20Japanese%20Cedar%20Longhorn%20Beetle/Smaller%20Japanese%20Cedar%20Longhorn%20Beetle.php?aid=176

Pest Management Page for Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle
Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Fisheries, Government of British Columbia
http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/cropprot/jlbeetle.htm

Japanese Cedar Longhorned Beetle: University of Maryland Extension.
https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/invasives/japanese-cedar-longhorned-beetle

Fact Sheet for Callidielleum rufipenne (Motschuslky): The Exotic Pest Information System for North American
http://www.spfnic.fs.fed.us/exfor/data/pestreports.cfm?pestidval=87&langdisplay=english

Close-up Photo of the Insect: Micheal Hoskovec, DNP, Czech Republic
http://www.uochb.cas.cz/~natur/cerambyx/calidruf.htm

Japanese cedar longhorned beetle information and detailed photos - Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
http://www.invasive.org/browse/subinfo.cfm?sub=2255

last reviewed December 18, 2014