Delco officials warn of invasive spotted lanternfly
MEDIA » Don’t let their beauty fool you. The spotted lanternfly is a bad bug, an invasive insect with a taste for grapevines, fruit trees and other agricultural goodies.
It’s bad news for the region that the lanternfly has been spotted in Delaware County, Philadelphia and Montgomery County.
A spokeswoman for Delaware County issued a press release warning the public about the insect.
The spotted lanternfly hails from Southeast Asia and China turned up in 2014 in Berks County and began spreading.
While the spotted lanternfly prefers to feast on Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus), another invasive species, it can eat more than 70 other trees and plants, said Heather Leach, a Penn State Extension spotted lanternfly associate in the university’s entomology department.
These include the grape, tree-fruit, hardwood and nursery industries, which bring nearly $18 billion to the state’s economy.
Penn State is working with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Agriculture to stem the tide of the pesky bug and keep it quarantined in southeastern Pennsylvania. However, colonies have appeared in New Jersey and in northern Virginia in the Winchester area, Leach said.
“Orchards, wineries, hardwood and nursery industries across the county could be impacted,” said Delaware County Council Chairman John McBlain, in a press release. “We want to make residents aware of the threat and inform them about the best ways to control the population. While they don’t pose a health risk, they do present a threat to Delaware County’s and the state’s agricultural businesses.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture advises that the adult spotted lanternfly and nymphs can be mechanically destroyed, such as being swatted with a shoe. If you encounter an egg mass, they suggest scraping the mass into a bottle that can be sealed. Otherwise, mechanically destroy it as best as possible. Check your car and any furniture before exiting a quarantine zone. The species are known as hitchhikers and camouflage themselves in blankets and on cars. If moving furniture or wood out of the quarantined area, please make sure they are free of egg masses.
The quarantine has been imposed on Berks, Bucks, Chester, Dauphin, Delaware, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Monroe, Montgomery, Northampton, Philadelphia, and Schuylkill counties. Delaware County’s Department of Intercommunity Health, the Delaware County Conservation District and the Penn State Extension have partnered to hold a presentation for residents and business owners regarding the threat of the Spotted Lanternfly and methods to control the species this fall. More information will be released when a date and time are scheduled.
More information on the Spotted Lanternfly can be found: www.extension. psu.edu/spotted-lanternfly or www.agriculture. pa.gov/spottedlanternfly
The Penn State Extension Hotline: 1-888-422-3359