Nevada Division of Forestry officials said in late January that they’re trying to control the outbreak by pruning salvageable trees and cutting down others.

“Right now, we have a pretty bad infestation here,” Gail Durham, forest health specialist with the Nevada Division of Forestry, told the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza. “What we’re trying to do is get the forest healthy enough to survive on its own.”

Dwarf mistletoe and bark beetle infestations, which are native to the region, also have been detected in trees in Incline Village and Crystal Bay, officials said.

Beth Moxley, owner of Rockwood Tree Service, said she thinks a combination of factors could be behind a recent rash of fallen trees in the area.

Factors could include high winds, extreme cold temperatures and a delayed reaction to recent droughts, she said.

Similar infestations have killed thousands of trees in the Lake Tahoe Basin in the past.