Spotted Lanternfly Could Wreak Havoc In Loudoun County: Experts

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA—Beware the spotted lanternfly. That's the word from officials in Loudoun County, who sent out a release this week warning folks that the little insect and its brethren, as it were, likely will begin showing up in the county within the next year. Why the alarm? Simple. It can devastate crops such as grapes, peaches, plums, cherries and hops.

"We have yet to detect the spotted lanternfly in Loudoun, but it has been found in nearby Frederick County," said Beth Sastre, a horticulturist with the Virginia Cooperative Extension, Loudoun Office, in the release. "We’re likely twelve months away from the first spotted lanternfly showing up on a Loudoun fruit tree, hops vine, or a grape vine but once established, the pest is devastating."

Earlier this year, Bloomsberg Businessweek published a piece under the headline: "America Isn’t Ready for the Lanternfly Invasion." It pointed out that, "Native to Southeast Asia, it was discovered in Berks County (Pa.) in 2014. Already it's threatening to harm more plants and crops than even the brown marmorated stink bug, discovered in Pennsylvania around the turn of the century and now wreaking havoc in 43 states."

The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services detected the spotted lanternfly earlier this year in Winchester, according to Loudoun County officials. Besides Pennsylvania, it also has been found in Connecticut, Maryland New Jersey and New York. It's a hitchhiker and can be spread inadvertently by people.

Officials say early detection is vital to managing the spotted lanternfly. Loudoun County residents are being asked to:

• Learn to identify spotted lanternfly in its different life stages.
• Look for spotted lanternfly egg masses from now to early spring by checking tree trunks, wheel wells, lawn furniture, fences, storage sheds, rocks and other smooth surfaces.
• Destroy the egg masses by scrapping them from tree bark or any other surface and putting them in a container, such as a bag, filled with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer. The egg masses can also be smashed.
• Learn to identify Tree of Heaven from other look-alike trees and remove female trees from your yard, using best-management practices (BMP) to avoid clone reproduction.
• Share information about the pest with your family, friends, and others in your network to help raise awareness about the threat and what people can do to help stop the spotted lanternfly.
• Report sightings of spotted lanternflies and their egg masses.

Anyone who sees a spotted lanternfly or an egg mass is encouraged to report it to the Virginia Cooperative Extension, Loudoun Office, through this online form.

Image via Loudoun County. Photo via Greg Hoover/Penn State University