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they've killed large numbers of trees in the Medicine Bow and Sierra Madre ranges in the southern part of the state and remain active in the Absaroka Mountains southeast of Yellowstone.
• Spruce beetles were active over some 56 square miles of Wyoming forest last year, a roughly average number compared to infestation rates in the state over the past decade.
• Forest officials don't expect spruce beetles, ultimately, to kill as many trees as the mountain pine beetle has because their host tree species aren't as numerous as the mountain pine beetle's host species. While spruce beetles infest Engelmann spruce and blue spruce, the mountain pine beetle infests lodgepole, limber and ponderosa pine.
• Since the mid-1990s, mountain pine beetle infestation in the three states has covered a total area larger than Massachusetts. The pine beetle outbreak has slowed significantly over the past four years, largely because there are too few live lodgepole, limber and ponderosa trees left to infest.
• There are exceptions. Some pockets of forest, including along the Colorado Front Range, have remained unaffected by mountain pine beetle for reasons not entirely clear, said Susan Gray, a regional forest health manager for the Forest Service.
• "Maybe winds haven't driven beetles in that direction," Gray said. "People really don't know why. They're continuing to look into it."
• Much of the recent spread of spruce beetles has been occurring in the Rio Grande and Gunnison national forests in southwest Colorado and the Routt and Roosevelt national forests north and west of Rocky Mountain National Park.
• Frigid weather can kill beetles, but spells of bitter cold in the Rockies this winter are unlikely to have much effect on either beetle species, Gray said. Cold temperatures are more likely to kill beetles in late spring and early fall.
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• PIERRE, S.D. (AP) -- State officials say the South Dakota National Guard Museum will be closed for remodeling through mid-April.
• The state's Department of the Military says the renovation project includes lighting and ceiling upgrades in one of the museum's galleries.
• The museum will close Monday.
• The state's Legislature established the museum in 1983. Anti-aircraft guns, an armored personnel carrier and a Sherman tank are among the items on display.

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