"Last week, General Sherman, California's most famous giant sequoia, got a checkup.

Climbers from the Ancient Forest Society scaled the tree looking for signs of a sequoia bark beetle infestation — entrance holes where adults had burrowed into the branches and laid their eggs; exit holes, where larvae chewed their way out; globules of pitch, indicating the tree was putting up a fight, trying to push the beetles out.

And, simply, whether Sherman's canopy looked healthy.

The beetles can kill a tree within a year, starting at the top and working their way down over several generations. Feeding on the cambium, they can interrupt the tree's ability to distribute water and nutrients. "

Jacob Margolis reports for LAist May 27, 2024. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Wildfires Threaten California Sequoias. Will A New Farm Bill Measure Actually Help?" (Sacramento Bee)
https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article288... [3]

"'Devastating': Tiny Insects Are Killing Giant Sequoias In California National Parks" (SFGate)
https://www.sfgate.com/california-parks/article/bark-beetles-killing-gia... [4]