''Scolytus schevyrewi'', the banded elm bark beetle, is a 3–4 mm long elm bark beetle species in the genus ''

Scolytus ''Scolytus'' is a genus of bark beetle A bark beetle is the common name for the subfamily of beetles Scolytinae. Previously, this was considered a distinct family (Scolytidae), but is now understood to be a specialized clade of the "true wee ...

'' native from Asia and accidentally introduced to North America. It is a

vector Vector most often refers to: *Euclidean vector, a quantity with a magnitude and a direction *Vector (epidemiology), an agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen into another living organism Vector may also refer to: Mathematic ...

of the

Dutch elm disease Dutch elm disease (DED) is caused by a member of the sac fungi (Ascomycota) affecting elm trees, and is spread by elm bark beetles. Although believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease was accidentally introduced into Americas, America ...

, caused by the

Ascomycota Ascomycota is a phylum of the kingdom Fungi that, together with the Basidiomycota, forms the subkingdom Dikarya. Its members are commonly known as the sac fungi or ascomycetes. It is the largest phylum of Fungi, with over 64,000 species. The def ...

Ophiostoma ulmi ''Ophiostoma ulmi'' is a species of fungus in the family Ophiostomataceae. It is one of the causative agents of Dutch elm disease. It was first described under the name ''Graphium ulmi'', and later transferred to the genus ''Ophiostoma''. Dutc ...

'' and ''

Ophiostoma novo-ulmi ''Ophiostoma'' is a genus of fungi within the family Ophiostomataceae. It was circumscribed in 1919 by mycologists Hans Sydow and Paul Sydow. Species *''Ophiostoma adjuncti'' *'' Ophiostoma ainoae'' *'' Ophiostoma allantosporum'' *'' Ophiosto ...

''. In North America, it is displacing both the native elm bark beetle and the previously introduced smaller European elm bark beetle, which are becoming less common in their range with the expansion of ''S. schevyrewi''.

References

Scolytinae Insect pests of temperate forests Beetles described in 1802 Taxa named by Andrey Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky {{Scolytinae-stub