Post by olhillbilly on Apr 2, 2008 0:15:02 GMT -6
As some of you may know, a beetle causes the much valued bird's-eye figure in hard and soft maple lumber. The bug in question is the Kentucky curved carapace beetle (Ignus veritas curvitus tata). Ordinarily the relationship between humans and the beetle is benign; in fact, the beetles ordinarily do not interact with humans. Instead, the bugs drill their sharp carapaces into the bark of maple trees and inject them with a solution that causes maple sap (also desired for maple syrup production) to flow — they have a bug’s equivalent of a sweet tooth. This chemical causes the wood to dimple into what woodworkers know as the bird's-eye figure.
Recently, a change occurred in the beetle’s behavior. A couple of years ago, as hikers, campers and other outdoor-minded folks started crossing large parts of the heart of the maple tree range, the Kentucky beetles started confusing people with maple trees. As they twisted their sharp-edged carapaces into unsuspecting folks, the fluid that flowed was not sap, but blood.
Why this dramatic change in bug behavior? The answer is hard to believe.
“We’ve traced the cause back to breakfast cereal,” said Cody Lewcypher, director of “The” Ohio State University forestry research department. Ms. Lewcyphyer, located at the Quaking Bottoms regional campus, claims that as ethanol production overtook the majority of corn production, corn syrup, the predominant sweetener in the boxed cereal industry, became too expensive for most producers. Two other events combined to cause this tragedy. First, fiscal years '06 and '07 were banner years for domestic maple syrup production. By a remarkable coincidence, they were also the years that tons of inexpensive Asian maple syrup were dumped into the U.S. market. Just as unexpected events combined to cause the tragic molasses flood of 1915, the overabundance of cheap maple syrup gave the cereal producers just the right incentive to replace corn syrup with maple syrup. As healthy-eating outdoorsy folks went into the woods and began to exercise, their perspiration apparently resembled maple tree transpiration … causing the beetles to attack.
“This is not the first time healthy eating and exercise have led to tragic results,” said Ima Plumper, spokesperson for the Syrup Producers of America Zoological Organization (SPAZO). “This is not our problem.”
As a result, SPAZO is calling for increased insecticide use to solve the bug attacks. But without the beetles, there will be no more bird's-eye maple.
Recently, a change occurred in the beetle’s behavior. A couple of years ago, as hikers, campers and other outdoor-minded folks started crossing large parts of the heart of the maple tree range, the Kentucky beetles started confusing people with maple trees. As they twisted their sharp-edged carapaces into unsuspecting folks, the fluid that flowed was not sap, but blood.
Why this dramatic change in bug behavior? The answer is hard to believe.
“We’ve traced the cause back to breakfast cereal,” said Cody Lewcypher, director of “The” Ohio State University forestry research department. Ms. Lewcyphyer, located at the Quaking Bottoms regional campus, claims that as ethanol production overtook the majority of corn production, corn syrup, the predominant sweetener in the boxed cereal industry, became too expensive for most producers. Two other events combined to cause this tragedy. First, fiscal years '06 and '07 were banner years for domestic maple syrup production. By a remarkable coincidence, they were also the years that tons of inexpensive Asian maple syrup were dumped into the U.S. market. Just as unexpected events combined to cause the tragic molasses flood of 1915, the overabundance of cheap maple syrup gave the cereal producers just the right incentive to replace corn syrup with maple syrup. As healthy-eating outdoorsy folks went into the woods and began to exercise, their perspiration apparently resembled maple tree transpiration … causing the beetles to attack.
“This is not the first time healthy eating and exercise have led to tragic results,” said Ima Plumper, spokesperson for the Syrup Producers of America Zoological Organization (SPAZO). “This is not our problem.”
As a result, SPAZO is calling for increased insecticide use to solve the bug attacks. But without the beetles, there will be no more bird's-eye maple.