The emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) is capable of infesting both weakened and healthy trees, inevitably leading to their death. This quarantine pest was first discovered in Ukraine in Luhansk region during summer 2019. In June 2020, acting director of the State Specialized Forest Protection Enterprise "Kharkivlisozakhyst" D.O. Baturkin, together with senior researcher K.V. Davydenko from the Forest Protection Laboratory of the Ukrainian Research Institute of Forestry and Agroforestry, and forester O.M. Siryk from Novopskov Forestry conducted a forest pathology survey to determine the boundaries of the emerald ash borer's spread and study its phenology in the new region.

The initial point of pest penetration was marked last year in plantations of Heraskivska village council in Markivskyi district of Luhansk region. Currently (as of June 2020), the pest has been identified in forest belts 32-52 km away from the initial penetration point, along the T1302 highway (between the villages of Zaidarivka and Mozhnyakivka).

Infested green ash trees (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) were found in forest belts. In forest stands containing European ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and green ash, the crowns showed no damage, but active beetle flight was observed along the roadsides.

During the examination of model trees infested by the borer, it was determined that dieback begins from the upper part of the crown and gradually spreads downward. Water sprouts appear on trunks, and root suckers emerge at the base. Active beetle flight was observed on the southern side of forest belts. No completely dead trees were found during the survey, with crown damage during additional beetle feeding reaching 25-75%. Under the bark, tunnels contained larvae of various ages and pupae, indicating that the flight period would continue for at least a month. Characteristic D-shaped exit holes were found on trunks and branches of more than half of the examined trees, meaning infestation occurred at least last year.

The pest can spread to new regions through planting material, logging residues, unprocessed wood, wood chips, and firewood. Although quarantine measures have been implemented in Troitskyi, Bilokurakynskyi, and Novopskovskyi districts of Luhansk region across 233.9 hectares, cutting and burning infested trees is currently ineffective as beetle flight has begun, and they are colonizing healthy trees which are difficult to detect.

Specialists from "Kharkivlisozakhyst" together with scientists from the Ukrainian Research Institute continue studying the pest's phenological and ecological characteristics, as this is a new species for Ukraine, and information about its biology, survey methods, and protection measures is primarily known from publications by American and Canadian researchers. DNA was extracted from collected beetles in field conditions for further molecular studies.