Beetle threatens famed blossoms

TOKYO - Across Japan's capital, pink and white cherry blossoms are emerging, but the famed blooms are facing a potentially mortal enemy, experts say: an invasive foreign beetle.

The alien invader is aromia bungii, otherwise known as the red-necked longhorn beetle, which is native to China, the Korean Peninsula and northern Vietnam.

The beetles live inside cherry and plum trees, stripping them of their bark. In serious cases, an infestation can kill a tree, and experts are sounding the alarm.