When I saw this beetle on the cedar shingles by the kitchen porch tonight, I knew that it was a member of the Cerambycid congregation, and from the white spots on the wing covers, I feared I was looking at a truly terrifying invasive species known as the Asian Long-horned Beetle. When these pests were detected in the Worcester, Massachusetts, area a decade ago, forestry officials quarantined the region and cut down an entire forest to prevent the spread of Anoplophora glabripennis into the surroundings. The draconian strategy worked to some degree, but was this mystery beetle an escapee that would require the demise of my woods? Happily, it's a different and thoroughly native species called the Whitespotted Pine Sawyer beetle, and while Monochamus scutellatus does make its living inside decaying wood, the rather handsome beetle doesn't kill trees so much as take advantage of those that are already sick and dying.