I is for Ips Beetle.

The Ips beetle is a serious pest and problem of the pine and spruce trees of the West slope of the Rocky Mountains. A tree can fight off Ips in small numbers, but when several hundred Ips beetles attack at one time, the tree has no chance and finds itself becoming the home and food of many Ips larvae.

Male Ips beetles are attracted by chemical signals given off by stressed trees and will fly up to 2 miles to reach a host tree. Once these beetles have arrived in a certain area, they may attack nearby trees that are not stressed.

The Ips beetle is a major threat to many trees of the Rocky Mountains.