Pardon my myopia, but I can't see what you're talking about. Do you mean those black, sausage shaped marks in the first picture? I can't see anything at all on the second picture.
What makes you think they're insects? Do you see legs, eyes, antennae? Do they move? Do they bleed when you squish 'em?
[quote="tstoehr":21fo1wl5]Pardon my myopia, but I can't see what you're talking about. Do you mean those black, sausage shaped marks in the first picture? I can't see anything at all on the second picture.
What makes you think they're insects? Do you see legs, eyes, antennae? Do they move? Do they bleed when you squish 'em?[/quote:21fo1wl5]
Yes, the black sausage shaped marks. They are not bark or a natural part of the tree. The second picture shows the spots where bark is falling off the tree in multiple spots, and the first is a close-up of one of the spots. I'm guessing that they are dormant eggs or larvae of some sort, but I really dont know, as they are quite hard. The tree is a triple, where someone planted three trees immediately next to each other, and only the red delicious has this problem. To give an Idea of size, the "spots" are about 1/4" long and a little less than 1/8" wide. the trunk you are looking at is about 7".
From these pictures I can't tell what they are, or even if they're living organisms or not. However, I would not think they are a problem. It could be just something hiding or hibernating under the bark. It doesn't seem like any apple tree pest that I know of. If they were on the leaves or new growth, that would be different. But I'm speaking from a Pacific Northwest perspective. What part of the country are you in?
The bark and tree looks healthy to me. I know it’s tempting to peel away the up-turned sections of mature bark, perhaps thinking it ‘helps’ the tree, or just out of curiosity as to what might be living under them – but don’t... I’ve noticed it’s a naturally occurring condition of mature fruit trees. I suspect it helps regulate their temperature while shading the tree from sunscald. Removing these layers is likely akin to peeling off layers of your skin…
Now that you’ve exposed ‘whatever’ the marks are (I can’t make them out either) to the elements, keep an eye on them. I suspect they’re ‘tracks’ of a chewing insect incapable of penetrating the depth of this otherwise beautiful looking apple tree’s bark. As suggested, if you find unhealthy conditions on it leaves, after they’ve emerged, worry. And keep us posted if you’d like; just put your camera on the ‘macro’ setting and try again 
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