Bark beetles are insects that are just millimeters long, spreading across forests - particularly in Europe and North America. By infesting a tree the bark beetle blocks the circulation of sap by attacking the bark of spruce trees and boring holes into the tree to lay its eggs, from which emerge larvae that attack the bark.
This results in the tree’s death in less than four weeks.
These small creatures can cause dramatic, irreversible alterations both in natural and urban forest environments. Although bark beetle infestations are a regular force of natural change in forested ecosystems, several of the current outbreaks are the largest and most severe in recorded history due to weakened woodlands caused by rising heat and drought.