Meet public enemy Number One – a new menace which has hitched a ride from China and is set to chomp into our trees.
The alarms are ringing after live specimens of the voracious Asian Longhorn Beetle were found in imports involving timber crates and packaging from China.
The Forestry Commission says the inch-long beetle with distinctive long antennae and black and white chequered markings posed a real threat to native broadleaf trees.
It is asking people to be alert and report findings after positive sightings at a number of sites in England and Wales which could all be linked to Chinese packing material.
Although there was no evidence yet that the beetles had spread to any trees near the affected sites, further intensive surveys are to take place in spring when the beetle becomes more active.
"The commission has decided to take early and positive steps to prevent the beetle becoming established in Britain," said head of the commission's Plant Health Service Roddie Burgess.
"We know that the beetle would survive in most of the country and that it would cause economic damage, not just to our forests and woodlands but also, possibly, to fruit-growers. The steps we are taking should ensure that this will not happen."
The commission has been working with Customs and Excise to identify importers of high-risk material. It is also making sure that packing crates from affected areas are bark-free and grub-hole free.
Anoplophora Glabripennis, also known as the starry sky beetle because of its distinctive markings, would attack several hardwood species such as sycamore, horse chestnut, willow and poplar if it became established here, said the commission. There was also evidence that it attacked fruit trees in its native area.
The commission said that native boring beetles attacked bark, rotten wood and a shallow layer only of live wood, whereas the longhorn beetle grubs made large boreholes deep into live wood and in some cases could kill trees.