Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle

Endangered Species Protection Program (ESPP) Des The U.S.Environmental Threatened speciesareplants The valleyelderberrylonghorn Endangered species Program (ESPP)willhelp Endangered SpeciesProtection Protection Agency’s(EPA) not jeopardizethesurvivalof becoming extinct. plants andanimalsthatare near future. numbers aresolowthatthey beetle isa may becomeendangeredinthe in immediatedangerof ensure thatpesticideusedoes and animalswhosepopulation listed species. mocerus californicus dimorphuss Male valleyelderberr Male threatened species y longhorn beety longhorn le courtes are y of T. S.Talley . Endangered Spec Endangered Valley ElderberryLonghornBeetle Office ofPesticide Programs (7507P) spots. Male elytra arebrightredaccentedwithfouroblongdark dark, nearlymetallicgreenincontrast withabrightrededge. heads andlegs.Theouterwings,orelytra, offemalesarea of femalesarelarger, 3/4to1inchinlength.Bothhave dark nae ofmalesarelongerthanthosefemales,butthebodies knobby antennaearenearlyaslongitsbody. Theanten- measured fromthetopofheadtotail.Itsdarkand has anelongatedshield-shapedbody, 1/2to1inchlongwhen Habitat Range Appearance Critical Habitat Status Description andEcology Sambucus mexicana elderberry ( riparian habitatonlyinthevicinityoftheirhostplant, San JoaquinValley. from southernShastaCountysouthtoFresnointhe species; accordingto190recordsthespecieswas located time, surveys have documentedabroaderdistributionofthe American River, PutahCreek,andtheMercedRiver. Sincethat longhorn beetlewas knowninonly10locationsalong the habitat was designated injusttwoplaces(theSacramento counties toShastaCounty).At thetimeoflisting,critical and 80%inthenorthernValley (Sacramento andSolano in themiddleValley (MercedCountytoSanJoaquinCounty) southern Central Valley (Kern CountytoFresnoCounty),84% of riparianhabitatfrom1900to1990was about96%inthe provides bothfoodandshelterforthedeveloping larva. Loss elderberry stemsandrootsatleastoneinchindiameter provide foodfortheadultbeetlewhileinteriorpithof At thetimeofitslistingvalley elderberry Threatened, listedAugust8,1980. Valley elderberrylonghornbeetlesarefound in Sambucus Theadultvalley elderberrylonghornbeetle ). Leaves and DesignatedAugust8,1980. speciessuchastheMexicanelderberry flowers oftheelderberry http://www.epa.gov/espp/ U.S. EnvironmentalProtectionAgency hole”) andthenreturntothe pith,closingtheexitholewith larvae boreback outofthestem(therebycreating“exit least 1.0inchindiameterat ground level. Intheirlaststage, completing thecycle thestemsofelderberries mustbeat and eatforuptotwoyears. For thelarvae tobesuccessful in bark intothepithofelderberrystemwheretheytunnel petiole junctions.Afterhatchingthelarvae bore throughthe ices ofthebark,atstem/trunkjunctions,orstem/ their eggsaredepositedonlive elderberrybushesinthecrev After mating, feeding andmating,fromMarchuntilJune. egg, larva, pupa,andadult.Theadultbeetles areactive, cycle ofthevalley elderberrylonghornbeetlehasfourstages: Reproduction andLifeCycle mains listedasthreatened. Asaresult,the speciesre- beetle arenotfullyunderstood. metapopulation dynamicsofthevalley elderberry longhorn restored habitatwillbeadoptedbybeetles,andthespeci ability ofelderberrywithintherestoredhabitatorwhether riparian habitat,thatnotenoughisknownaboutthesurviv limit futurerestoration ofvalley elderberrylonghornbeetle/ FWS recognizes thatmaintenanceoflevees andcanalsmay Beetle 5-yearReview considered delistingthisspecies( major reasonsfortheFishandWildlifeService(FWS)having derberry longhornbeetleoccurrences,togetherhave beenthe restoration ofriverine habitat,andtheincreaseinvalley el- horn beetle.Theslowdowninhabitatloss,theprotectionand have beenrestoredspeci been protected.Inaddition,5,000acresofriparianhabitat northern Valley 50,000acresofexistingriparianhabitathave the lossofriparianhabitathasslowed,andinmiddle to theAmericanRiver inSacramento. Over thepast25years Zone andtheAmericanRiver Parkway Zone) alongandclose Des ies mocerus californicus dimorphus , September26,2006).However, the fically forthevalley elderberrylong- Facts Valley ElderberryLonghorn Thecompletelife February 2010 fi c - - Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beet le

Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle a substance composed of wood shavings or chewed wood Information Sources and excrement called “frass.” The larvae then enter the pu- Primary Reference Beacham, Walton, Castronova, pal stage. After transformation, the adult beetle need only Frank F., and Sessine, Suzanne (eds.) 2001. Beacham’s break through the frass plug at the exit hole to continue Guide to the Endangered Species of North America, Gale Female Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beet le courtes y of T. S. Talley the cycle once again among the elderberries. Typically, Group, New York. Vol. 3, pp. 1475–1476. adult valley elderberry longhorn beetles emerge at about the same time as the elderberry ﬂowers bloom (between Listing Notice U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1980. mid-March and mid-June). Lizards, European earwigs, and Federal Register 45 No. 155, pp. 52803-52807, August 8, non-native Argentine ants prey upon the various life stages 1980. http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/federal_register/fr449.pdf of the valley elderberry longhorn beetle.

Recovery Plan FWS developed a recovery plan for Critical Habitat Designation U.S. Fish and the valley elderberry longhorn beetle in 1984. Recovery Wildlife Service. 1980.Federal Register 45 No. 155, pp. plans outline reasonable actions that FWS believes are 52803-52807, August 8, 1980. http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/ required to recover or protect listed species. FWS prepares federal_register/fr449.pdf recovery plans, sometimes with the assistance of recovery teams, contractors, state agencies, and others. Recovery Recovery Plan U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1984. plans do not necessarily represent the views nor the official Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle Recovery Plan. U.S. positions or approvals of any individuals or agencies, other Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland, Oregon. 62 pp. http:// than FWS, involved in the plan formulation. Approved re- www.fws.gov/sacramento/es/recovery_plans/velb_recov- covery plans are subject to modification as dictated by new ery_plan.pdf findings, changes in species’ status, and the completion of Species Account U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sac- recovery tasks. ramento Fish and Wildlife Offi ce, 2009. http://www.fws. gov/sacramento/es/animal_spp_acct/velb.pdf 5-year Review U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2006. 5-Year Review: Summary and Evaluation for the Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle (Desmocerus californicus). U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Sacramento Field Office, Sacramento, California. 28 pp. http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/ fi ve_year_review/doc779.pdf

Side view and front view of male valley elderberry longhorn beet les . Courtes y of T. S. Talley