Objective Picea schrenkiana is a dominant and key species in the mountain forest ecosystems of Xinjiang. It plays a vital role in maintaining regional ecosystem stability, regulating ecological balance, and enhancing the carbon sequestration potential of ecosystems. In recent years, extensive mortality of Picea schrenkiana has occurred in the Forestry Administration Bureau of the Eastern Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang. Multiple species of bark beetles were identified on dead trees of Picea schrenkiana, exhibiting clear signs of infestation. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between the mortality of Picea schrenkiana and bark beetles, whilst also identifying the species of bark beetles and the extent of the damage their cause, thereby providing a basis for future bark beetle control and scientific management.

Methods From June to September 2024, bark beetle in Picea schrenkiana under the Wusu Sub-bureau of the Forestry Administration Bureau of the Eastern Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang were collected using the stem analysis method and the bark peeling collection method. The collected specimens were identified and cataloged. Concurrently, a systematic survey of the damage severity caused by bark beetles was conducted using standard field investigation method.

Results A total of three species of bark beetles were surveyed on dead trees of Picea schrenkiana, namely: Ips hauseri Reitter, Pityogenes spessivtsevi Lebedev and Dendroctonus micans Kugelam. Notably, D. micans was recorded for the first time in Xinjiang. Analysis of the damage incidence rate in Picea schrenkiana revealed significant variation across different standard plots, with the highest damage incidence rate reaching 70.76%. Study on the emergence timing of bark beetles has shown that the peak emergence periods for the three species of bark beetles occur at different times, with D. micans exhibiting the latest emergence peak. The first trapping of the D. micans was in mid-August, only 3 were trapped.

Conclusion There are three species of bark beetle found on Picea schrenkiana in Wusu Sub-bureau of the Forestry Administration Bureau of the Eastern Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang, the infestation rates varies greatly among sites, and the current infestation of bark beetle is at the localised stage. Meanwhile, the results of the study provide important reference for the scientific prevention and control of Picea schrenkiana beetle in Wusu Sub-bureau of the Forestry Administration Bureau of the Eastern Tianshan Mountains of Xinjiang.