MADISON, Wis. -- For the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture it's an elusive suspect that may not even be in Wisconsin but the department is going to great lengths to make sure it's not here.

The Department of Agriculture is on the look out for the Emerald Ash Borer, a tiny beetle only about a half-inch long. However, if it finds its way to Wisconsin ash trees, everywhere will be at risk, WISC-TV reported.

Guy Fischer is one of 18 trappers working for the Department of Agriculture. His job is to check the thousands of giant purple triangles hanging in ash trees along the Wisconsin-Illinois state line.

"Anything that has a resemblance to a beetle, we pull off, no matter what size," said Fischer.

It's all part of a nation-wide program to monitor the spread of the Emerald Ash Borer.

The tiny beetle has the ability to devastate ash populations quickly, once they get under the bark, WISC-TV reported.

Becky Gray of the Department of Agriculture said, "It would be similar to Dutch Elm disease, when all of the streets lined with elm, they were suddenly gone. A lot of the elm trees were replaced with ash."

In its larval stage, the Emerald Ash Borer feeds on the tree's tissue, preventing its ability to process nutrients. The beetle hasn't been spotted in the state yet but it has been found in Illinois, WISC-TV reported.

"Natural spread is about half a mile a year," said Gray. "But what happens is, when people move infested firewood, they can move it hundreds of miles, just in their automobiles."

The Department of Agriculture will continue monitoring traps through August. Near the state line, they're only a mile and a half apart. It's a lot of work to find something, with hopes of coming up empty, WISC-TV reported.

"People have been coming up when they watch me take the bugs off. They're wondering if we've found anything," said Fischer. "I tell them, yeah, we've found beetles, we don't want to find the Emerald Ash, that's what I'm looking for, but of course we don't want to find it.

Because the Emerald Ash Borer can easily be transferred in firewood, officials remind everyone to purchase firewood locally and leave your own wood at home.

The Department of Agriculture is paying close attention to campgrounds and rest stops to make sure the beetle isn't brought to a region it hasn't yet infested.