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Extreme cold helping eliminate mountain pine beetles

Feb 11, 2019 | 11:38 AM

An associate professor at the University of Alberta says recent bitter temperatures may put a major dent in the destructive mountain pine beetle population.

Janice Cooke, who works in the department of biological sciences, says having a nightly low around minus 35 Celsius is killing untold numbers of young beetles.

Cooke estimates that the recent cold snap has killed 90% of pine beetle larvae infestations in some areas of the province, but she admits the cold will never kill them all.

The insect has killed more than 16-million hectares of B-C forest and has begun destroying vast areas of Alberta’s boreal habitat.