Elise thatcher, a producer for colorado matters on colorado public radio, says. Their preferred host is mature lodgepole pines, but they can also attack younger lodgepole pines, ponderosa pines, jack pines, and western white pines. Pin On Trees The blue stain fungus works with the beetles by turning to the tree’s wood into nutrients. What is killing pine trees in colorado . Seedlings planted in freshly cut areas are injured or killed by adult weevils that feed on the stem bark. When galls occur on the main trunk of very small pines, removal is the only option. Write a one act play to communicate your explanation for what is killing the lodgepole pine trees and why it is happening at a faster rate than we’ve seen in the past. Solar treatments can be used to reduce mountain pine beetle populations in small infested stands. Several species of bark beetles are presently killing lodgepole pine, ponderosa pine, limber pine, engelmann spruce, subalpine fir and colorado blue spruc...