It's been a rough few years for the trees of the Lower Haight.
When they're not toppling over in storms, falling over in parks, crushing pickup trucks, crushing Audis, crushing Toyotas, or spontaneously splitting in two, they're getting felled by the tiniest of creatures.
Last summer, all but three of the 17 trees on Pierce Street between Oak and Fell were removed after it was discovered that they were infested by insects.
Now, the remaining three trees are facing a similar fate.
It seems the Myoporum trees pictured above are afflicted with Myoporum thrips, an invasive insect species that's native to Australia. The bugs feed on the sap of the trees, drying them out and potentially leading to tree deformity — or even death.
Myoporum trees are native to New Zealand, and were first introduced to California as far back as 1863. They're considered relatively low maintenance, as they don't require much pruning or watering. The Urban Forest Map currently lists 325 Myoporum trees scattered throughout the city, from the Outer Sunset to Mission Bay.
It's unlikely we'll see any new Myoporum plantings any time soon, however, as the relatively recent thrips invasion continues to claim tree after tree. Myoporum thrips were first discovered in the U.S. in 2005, plaguing trees in Southern California (Orange County, to be precise). By 2008, thrips were being reported in the Bay Area as well. They have since been responsible for the removal of a number of trees throughout San Francisco, including the dozen or so on Pierce Street last year.
Those trees on Pierce were replaced with other species, including gingko bilobas, jacarandas and Catalina ironwoods. Flyers affixed to the three dying Myoporum pictured above indicate that they will be removed some time in April, and will similarly be replaced with species to be determined.
