The Asian longhorned beetle has been compared to Darth Vader more than once, and with some good reasons. In a recent article in the MetroWest Daily News out of Framingham MA, they said the ALB is, "Nicknamed the "Darth Vader" bug because of its shiny, black shell and ominous presence, the invasive species has no natural predators..."
I admit this is an imperfect comparison, but an interesting one. Darth Vader didn't start out evil- he became evil when he converted to the dark side. Asian longhorned beetles aren't intrinsically bad. While they are indeed agricultural (tree farms) pests in their native range in Asia, they only become hugely damaging and out of control when they are accidentally transported into a new area (like Chicago or Worcester).
Similarly to the evil that deeply penetrated Darth Vader, allowing him to try to kill his own son, the damage done to a tree infested with Asian longhorned beetles is internal, and it takes a long time to manifest itself. Once completely penetrated, neither a maple nor Anakin Skywalker can recover.
And without the benefit of being a truely devoted fan of the Star Wars series, let me draw this one final parallel. Darth Vader was only able to achieve the damage he did because his influence was spread throughout the galaxy. Likewise, the Asian longhorned beetle is only a really terrible threat when it spreads (most often via firewood) and if it is found before it gets entrenched in an area, it isn't nearly as problematic.
In conclusion, firewood is like a group of errant Storm Troopers, spreading the dark side of the force. Don't go to the dark side. Don't Move Firewood.
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