The 2026 Mountain Pine Beetle Outbreak: What It Means for Colorado Springs Trees
Colorado’s ponderosa pine forests are facing their most active pine beetle outbreak since the epidemic that swept 3.4 million acres of the state between the late 1990s and 2013. According to the Colorado State Forest Service’s 2025 Forest Health Report, aerial surveys across nine Front Range counties (Larimer, Boulder, Gilpin, Jefferson, Clear Creek, Teller, Park, Douglas, and El Paso) found the infestation grew from 2,236 impacted acres in 2024 to 5,544 acres in 2025 — a 148% increase. El Paso County is specifically identified in the report as one of five counties with the largest amount of susceptible ponderosa pine forest in the region, alongside Jefferson, Douglas, Larimer, and Boulder.
Why This Pine Beetle Invasion Is Different
Much of the Front Range’s current ponderosa pine forest largely escaped the last major epidemic, which mostly devastated lodgepole pine stands in Summit, Grand, Eagle, and Routt counties. That means many of today’s ponderosa stands are mature, high-diameter, and largely untested by a major beetle event; these are exactly the conditions that put beetles in a position to kill trees at scale. The CSFS notes that mountain pine beetles typically target trees 6 inches or more in diameter, and more than half of trees per acre across the nine-county survey area fall into that susceptible size range.
Record warm temperatures and recurring drought are compounding the problem. Stressed, under-watered trees produce less of the natural resin they rely on to fight off attacking beetles, making them easier targets. The winter of 2025-2026 was one of the warmest since Colorado’s temperature records began in 1895, with a statewide snow drought that left ponderosa forests without the early-season soil moisture they typically rely on heading into summer.
Pine Beetle Damage in Colorado: What the Data Shows in El Paso County
A more detailed CSFS analysis published in May 2026 breaks the pine beetle infestation down by county, and the picture in El Paso County is one of a forest at risk more than a forest currently overwhelmed. Here’s what the data shows:
- El Paso County contains roughly 62,800 acres of ponderosa-dominant forest, making up about 30% of the county’s total forested land.
- In the 2025 aerial survey, El Paso County had 287 acres mapped with visible beetle activity; after adjusting for infestation severity, the CSFS estimates about 64 acres of confirmed pine beetle damage in the county.
- El Paso’s ponderosa stands have a basal area (a measure of stand density) of about 74 square feet per acre — right at the threshold research has linked to elevated infestation risk.
Looking ahead, El Paso is one of the counties the CSFS flags as having the largest acreage and volume of susceptible ponderosa pine if the outbreak spreads from its current centers over the next few growing seasons.
It’s worth being precise about what that last point means and doesn’t mean: the CSFS is explicit that these spread-scenario figures are not predictions of what will happen, but estimates of which areas contain the kind of dense, mature ponderosa stands that would be most exposed if the infestation continues to expand. Right now, detected activity across the nine-county region — including El Paso — remains a small fraction of total ponderosa acreage. The concern isn’t that El Paso is already hard-hit; it’s that the county has a meaningful amount of the kind of forest this beetle prefers, sitting close to where activity has already been confirmed.
Why Are Colorado Pine Trees Dying? Understanding the Risk to Your Property
Beyond individual tree loss, this Colorado beetle infestation carries a wildfire dimension that’s especially relevant for El Paso County properties. Much of the beetle activity across the region is occurring in the wildland-urban interface where homes and neighborhoods sit directly within or adjacent to forest. The CSFS reports that these low-elevation ponderosa forests already carry high to very high wildfire burn probability due to existing fuel loads and stand density, independent of the beetle outbreak. An expanding pine beetle infestation adds standing dead and dying trees to that fuel picture over time, which is why early monitoring on individual properties matters even while county-wide activity remains limited today. For properties adjacent to forested areas, creating defensible space around your home is one of the most effective steps you can take independent of beetle activity.
Timing Matters: When Are Pine Beetles Active?
CSFS trapping data shows mountain pine beetle flight activity typically begins in early July, peaks in the last week of July through the first week of August, and tapers off by early September. That window is critical. Preventive treatments and pruning are most effective when applied before beetles begin flying to new host trees, and cut or pruned material can actually attract beetles if not managed correctly during flight season.
A Coordinated Response
In December 2025, Governor Polis signed an executive order creating a statewide task force to develop strategies for managing the Front Range outbreak. That response includes protecting high-value individual trees, thinning stands to improve overall tree health, and removing infested trees before beetles emerge and spread. The CSFS describes this as a long-term, multi-decade effort rather than a problem with a single fix.
Protecting Your Trees Starts with Early Inspection
For homeowners with mature ponderosa pines, the most useful step right now is a professional inspection before the beetle flight season ramps up this summer. Our ISA Certified Arborists can check for early warning signs of a bark beetle infestation — pitch tubes, boring dust, and needle discoloration — and recommend preventive treatment where it can still make a difference.
Reach out to Affordable Tree & Shrub Experts today for a consultation and free estimate.