Two dead bugs recently found in eastern Massachusetts have state agricultural officials sounding the alarm about an invasive pest with a big appetite for grapevines, hops and fruit trees.
Spotted lanternflly populations have grown explosively in Pennsylvania since their discovery in the state in 2014. Since then, infestations of the sap-sucking insects, native to Asia, have broken out in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, and West Virginia and Connecticut.
The dead Massachusetts specimens, found in Milford and Norwood, came on materials shipped from Pennsylvania counties currently under a spotted lanternfly quarantine, said Jennifer Forman Orth, a biologist with the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources.
State agricultural officials are urging anyone who has received goods or materials — such as plants, landscaping materials, or outdoor furniture — from a state with a known spotted lanternfly infestation to carefully check the materials, including any packaging, for signs the insects. Although the main host plant of the spotted lanternfly is tree-of-heaven, a deciduous tree native to China — itself a rapidly growing invasive species here in North America — the voracious pest feeds on over 100 different plant species. Residents should look for large, gray insects, about one inch long, with black spots and red underwings, or inch-long, rectangular yellowish-brown egg masses covered with a gray waxy coating. Egg masses may be found on any flat surface.
Adult lanternflies damage plants by feeding on the sap and excreting honeydew, according to a fact sheet issued by the Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project. The honeydew then causes sooty mold and attracts other insects that may also cause damage to the plant.
Residents who suspect they have encountered the pest should take a photo or collect the specimen, and report any potential sightings via the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources online reporting form, available at: massnrc.org/pests/pestFAQsheets/spottedlanternfly.html. The coronavirus pandemic has contributed to the need for increased vigilance because many residents across the state have been improving their outdoor spaces with new outdoor furniture, play structures and gazebos, as well as trees and shrubs for landscaping, officials said. When shipped from places with spotted lanternfly infestations, these products, and the vehicles used for transportation, can unintentionally carry the pest into new areas.
