Destructive, boring insect shows up in Massachusetts

Massachusetts officials say an emerald ash borer was found in Dalton in the western part of the state on Aug. 31, the first time the destructive pest has been detected in the state.

The bug, named for its color and the way it bores into ash trees, is a potential threat to the vast numbers of ash trees in both western and eastern Massachusetts. State officials say any area where the bug shows up will be subject to the same sort of quarantine familiar to Jamaica Plain residents confronted by the sudden menace of Asian longhorned beetles in 2010.