Spotted Lanternfly Information & Facts

Be connected the Lookout for the Spotted Lanternfly – The Spotted Lanternfly (SLF), Lycorma delicatula, an invasive pest autochthonal to China, India, and Vietnam, was first discovered successful the U.S. successful Pennsylvania successful Berks County successful 2014, and has dispersed to different states including New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, New York, Connecticut and Ohio.

Though harmless to humans and animals, the spotted lanternfly is simply a voracious eater that causes important feeding harm specified arsenic oozing sap, wilting, leafage curling and dieback successful trees, vines, crops and galore different types of plants. It uses its piercing-sucking mouthpart to provender connected sap from implicit 70 antithetic works species. The ample fig successful which these pests amass, lend to the severity of demolition they cause.

The SLF excretes honeydew (a sugary substance) arsenic it feeds, that tin physique up and beforehand the maturation of sooty mold (fungi), which tin screen and injure plants and wood understories, arsenic good arsenic get connected patio furniture, cars, and thing other recovered beneath the lanternfly’s feeding area.

Preferred Plantings of the Spotted Lanternfly

Spotted lanternflies person a penchant for Ailanthus altissima, the Tree of Heaven, and grapes – some orchard and chaotic grapes, which has a devastating effect connected vineyards. Tree of Heaven is autochthonal to China, but was wide planted successful overmuch of the eastbound U.S. decades agone some for erosion power and arsenic an ornamental thoroughfare histrion successful galore towns. Female trees nutrient abundant seeds that tin instrumentality basal successful a assortment of soils, which has caused the histrion to present beryllium regarded arsenic an invasive works successful the US. In summation to Tree of Heaven and grapes, the SLF besides likes apple, peach, walnut and maple trees, positive basil plants, vegetables and hops.

Lifecyle of the Spotted Lanternfly

Adults laic eggs successful masses successful the precocious autumn connected trees, posts, tract furniture, cars, trailers, outdoor grills, firewood – thing near outdoors. Females tin laic up to 2 ovum masses, each consisting of 30-50 eggs. Each ovum wide is astir 1 inch successful size. A freshly laid ovum wide has a airy gray, mud-like covering implicit the eggs. Older ovum masses crook airy tan and lucifer cracked mud. Hatched ovum masses suffer their mud-like covering, exposing idiosyncratic eggs that look similar seeds. Research has shown that 80 to 90 percent of ovum masses connected trees are recovered 10 feet oregon much supra ground.

Spotted lanternflies spell done 5 stages of maturation aft hatching from their eggs. In their archetypal 4 stages (nymph stages) the are incapable of flight. The young nymphs, astir the size of a pencil eraser, are achromatic with agleam achromatic spots. In the adjacent stages of growth, the nymphs look the same, but go larger. In the 4th signifier of growth, conscionable anterior to adulthood, the spotted lanternfly turns a superb red, with chiseled patches/stripes of achromatic and agleam achromatic spots. Finally, the big SLF grows to astir 1″ long, with grey wings with achromatic spots. When the wings are opened, a agleam reddish underwing with achromatic spots is revealed. While the adults tin fly, they mostly similar to hop/jump and glide exposing their hindwings.

Quarantined NJ Counties

There are respective counties successful New Jersey that person a important capable infestation of Spotted Lanterfly to beryllium designated arsenic nether quarantine. Currently quarantined counties include:

• Burlington
• Camden
• Gloucester
• Hunterdon
• Mercer
• Salem
• Somerset
• Warren

Counties with confirmed, smaller SLF populations and /or regulatory incidents include:

• Atlantic
• Bergen
• Cumberland
• Essex
• Hudson
• Middlesex
• Monmouth
• Morris
• Ocean
• Passaic
• Sussex
• Union