Study: Warming winters could lead to bark beetle spread

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A bark beetle epidemic wiped out swaths of pinon trees around Santa Fe more than a decade ago, and now new research predicts that warming winters could spell more trouble.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory have done a large-scale analysis to demonstrate that higher temperatures allow the destructive beetle to multiply rapidly and expand its range.

Bark beetle is a broad classification that includes more than 6,000 beetle species that reproduce in the inner bark of trees.

Researcher Devin Goodsman says more beetles would stick around if they're not dying from the winter temperatures, but that means more competition within the species.