Cottony ash psyllids were found in Winnipeg last summer but are having more impact this season.
According to a CBC News report, Winnipeg trees are under a fresh attack from a new foe this season: the cottony ash psyllid, also known as jumping tree lice.
The tiny, yellow-and-black bugs were first spotted in city trees last year, but their impact was considered low at the time, said city forester Martha Barwinsky.
That changed this year thanks to a dry season, she said, although city tree experts are still determining the extent of the infestation.
“This spring, of course, a lot of the black ash trees were very late to leaf out, much like last year. But as they started to leaf out, the impact was even greater,” she said. “We’re finding, actually, much more advanced stages of the cottony ash psyllid this year.”
The three-millimetre-long bugs have been found throughout North America for roughly a century, Barwsinky said, but they’re a relatively new addition to a growing roster of dangers facing Winnipeg’s tree canopy.
See full report here.