Scientists from the Canadian Forest Service have a new plan to control the invasive brown spruce long-horn beetle.

To control their spread, scientists are scattering tiny white bio-degradable pheromone laced flakes from a helicopter near Halifax, Nova Scotia. The pheromone is from the male brown spruce long-horn beetle and it attracts other beetles looking to mate.

The voracious insect has infected large tracts of forest in and around Halifax since arriving in the municipality, most likely in wood packing material unloaded at the Port of Halifax adjacent to Point Pleasant Park.

Jon Sweeney of the Canadian Forest Service is hoping this year's tests are successful. Sweeney and his team carried out a similar experiment last year with mixed results. But, he said, this time the team started earlier in the breeding season.

"There’s so much of the pheromone out there, they get used to it. They can’t smell it. So, that’s one idea of how it works," Sweeney said. "The other is…less sex happens and you suppress the population."

A similar approach is being used to control gypsy moth.

Read more:
Scientists use sex hormone to stop destructive beetle in Halifax (CBC)