The Spotted Lanternfly

The Spotted Lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula (White), is a plant hopper that is native to China, India and Vietnam and has become a major pest in eastern PA and in 8 counties in western NJ. It has been spotted in Ewing landscapes. They like over 70 different plant species, including fruit trees, ornamental trees, woody trees, vegetables, herbs and vines, as well as agricultural crops like grapes and hops.

The pest strongly prefers another invasive, the “Tree of Heaven, Ailanthus altissima, also from Asia.”  It is an excellent hitchhiker, so if you travel to and from areas where it has been currently found, you should search your vehicle, your clothing and your car load thoroughly, to help prevent its spread.

The Spotted Lanternfly is rather beautifully colored in its life stages.   The adult is approximately 1 inch long and a half inch wide at rest. The forewing is grey with black spots and the wings tips are reticulated black blocks outlined in gray. The hind wings have contrasting patches of red and black with a white band. The legs and head are black; the abdomen is yellow with broad black bands. Immature stages are black with white spots and develop red patches as they grow.  Before it’s a beautiful fly, it’s a nymph.  In the early stages it’s black later it turns red in July-September and eventually it looks like the fly and can be seen July – December.

Symptoms

• Sap oozing on a trunk,
• Wilting foliage,
• Branch dieback,
• Mortality of young trees and vines in severe cases
• Sooty blotch, from the secretion of honeydew, a sticky, sugary substance, which blackens plant tissue.
• On tree of heaven, black streaks of sooty mold may be visible on tree trunks or mats of fungal growth at the base of trees. Although sooty mold is superficial, discolored fruit is unmarketable.

How To Help Stop the Spread 

• Remove them:
  If you see egg masses, scrape them off, double bag them and throw them away. You can also place the eggs into alcohol, bleach, or hand sanitizer to kill them.
• Traps:
  How to build and use.
• Collect a specimen:
  Specimens of any life stage can be turned in to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture’s lab for verification.
• Take a picture: 
  A photograph of any life stage (including egg masses) can be submitted to SLF-plantindustry@ag.nj.gov.

Additional Resources

• Homeowner Resources
  Includes an excellent overview of management and control options from scraping and smashing, to tree traps, to biological, cultural and chemical control options.
• Life Stages

This insect is an excellent hitchhiker and is easily moved if no one is looking. If you are in the quarantine area, please “Look Before You Leave.”

Inspect your vehicles, trailers, or any outdoor items before you move around or out of a quarantine zone is important. If possible, don’t park under tree lines and keep windows rolled up when parking your vehicle. Familiarize yourself with the life stages of the insect and when in the season to look for them.

Survey your own property and community for possible SLF life stages. Any efforts you make in destroying the Spotted Lanternfly or its egg masses will help you and community reduce populations.

Please report any sightings outside of the quarantined counties.  Reports are recorded in a database for use by the NJDA and USDA to manage this pest. The database is used to help determine infested areas and possible treatment for high risk properties. 

Treatment is based on location, risk, and available funds. Join the effort to control and prevent the spread of Spotted Lanternfly. We need everyone’s help to protect their properties and communities from this invasive pest.

Please do not panic, Spotted Lanternfly will NOT sting or bite humans or animals.