Insects, fire, and diseases damage or kill trees. Above, left: Japanese beetles 

 defoliate trees and many other plants; despite strong efforts against them in Eastern 

 States, they move southward and westward. Above, right: Larvae of bark beetles 

 will develop into adults, eat their way outward, and attack other pines. Below, left: 

 Termites do 40 million dollars worth of damage a year to buildings in the United 

 States, not counting poles, posts, derricks. A termite colony may comprise 250,000 

 individuals of three castes defenders, reproducers, and the wood-boring workers. 

 Below, right: Blister rust on 15-year-old western white pine infected in 1941. 



