Inspectors find Asian beetle in Ohio

BETHEL, Ohio — An Asian beetle that kills some types of hardwood trees has been found in southwest Ohio.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture says a landowner east of Cincinnati in Clermont County noticed damage to several maple trees. Federal and state inspectors confirmed Friday that Asian long-horned beetles were to blame.

Agriculture officials are surveying the area near the village of Bethel to determine the size and scope of the infestation.

The beetles tunnel into tree trunks and large branches and kill several types of trees, including buckeye, willow and American elm trees.

Officials say the beetles were first found in the United States 15 years ago and have been identified in five states. They have been able to contain the beetles at sites in Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York.