Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (Photo provided — www.nyis.info)

LAKE GEORGE — The Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, a minuscule invasive species that attacks hemlock trees, has been confirmed for the first time in the Adirondack Park.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation revealed the existence of a small population of the species on forest preserve lands in the town of Lake George. A senior ecologist from the Harvard research forest found the pest on an old-growth hemlock on Prospect Mountain.

After the discovery, DEC staff, along with a scientist from Cornell, surveyed 250 acres of land around the original tree, and found another small infestation on a younger hemlock nearby.

DEC is working on removing the infestation, saying in a press release that cutting trees down is not an effective way to treat HWA. Instead, applying insecticide to the base of the tree allows the poison to spread throughout the tree. When HWA start feeding on the tree, the insecticide kills them.

Although HWA has been documented in 29 New York counties, this is the first such infestation within the Blue Line.

For more information on HWA, go to www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7250.html.