During a forest pathology survey of pine stands in the Bir area of Zavhorodnie Forestry, Izium Forest Enterprise of Kharkiv Regional Forestry and Hunting Management, conducted jointly with the enterprise's forest protection service, the death of red pine sawfly larvae due to a viral infection was observed. The last treatment of the stands using aerosol technology with GARD-MN and the viral preparation "Virin-Diprion" was carried out in 2013. Since then, the red pine sawfly population has not exceeded the harmful threshold and has not posed a threat to the pine stands.

Unfortunately, there are currently no approved viral insecticides for use, making treatment impossible. However, the natural viral infection among the larvae helps reduce their population.

Forester Serikov S., who has extensive experience in surveying stands and has participated multiple times in treatments of red pine sawfly outbreaks, is sharing his knowledge with a young and promising forest protection engineer, Irina Lisina.