Abstract: Emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), is an exotic forest pest recently discovered in North America, with the infestation centered in Michigan (United States) and Ontario (Canada). A recent pest risk assessment concluded that this new pest could spread throughout the range of ash trees in North America, and pose a serious threat to all 16 species of ash growing in the region. Many ash species are important as timber, ornamental species, and as a source of food for wildlife. This beetle is native to Asia, including China, Japan, Korea, and the Russian Far East. We conducted a literature review on the distribution of this beetle in China and other Asian countries, and preliminary field surveys on its distribution and damage in the northeastern provinces of China. These reviews revealed that this beetle is present in Heilongjiang, Liaoning and Jilin provinces. EAB has also been reported in Tianjin city, Shandong and Hebei provinces, and Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions in China, but its distribution is not uniform, occurring mainly on a stand-by-stand basis. Information on biology and ecology of this beetle is very limited. Several ash species in the genus Fraxinus in China were attacked.

Key words: Emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis, Fraxinus spp., distribution, survey, exotic pest