Citing dangers posed by dead trees, the Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation has closed trails in West Chop Woods in Vineyard Haven to public use.
The trails have been closed since Christmas Eve, and Adam Moore, executive director of the foundation, said the closure will be in place for about a month. He said the “hazard trees” near the trail posed a risk to visitors. A hazard tree is defined by the U.S. Forest Service as a tree with “a structural defect that makes it likely to fail in whole or in part.”
“The trees that have died have all been killed by the Southern pine beetle,” he said.
West Chop Woods, a 90-acre property that is largely a pitch pine forest, has been hard-hit by Southern pine beetles, insects that have become a scourge on Vineyard woodlands. The females of the species chew into pine trees and carve tunnels inside to lay eggs and release pheromones to attract males, a process that ultimately overwhelms the plant. These beetles have encroached on other parts of the Island, and have even been found in some residential areas.
Moore said the property will be reopened to public use after the conservation organization has had time to fell the undetermined number of hazard trees, which will be cut with a forestry skid steer, a machine used to clear vegetation.
Anyone with further questions should reach out to the Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation at 508-693-5207 or info@sheriffsmeadow.org.