The wood was chipped with a high-speed, 12-inch disc chipper set to produce 1-by-1-inch chips, the USDA-APHIS standard that is also recommended in management programs for the Asian longhorned beetle ( Anoplophora glabripennis) and emerald ash borer ( Agrilus planipennis). The results were clear: In 11 trees’ worth of woody debris infested with spotted lanternfly egg masses, not a single nymph emerged after chipping. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture began a study on whether putting infested woody debris through a wood chipper would destroy spotted lanternfly egg masses. In 2015, shortly after the invasive insect was first discovered in Berks County, Pennsylvania, researchers at the U.S. The spotted lanternfly lays its eggs in small masses, which resemble splotches of mud, often on tree trunks and limbs. Because the spotted lanternfly’s primary target is Tree of Heaven ( Ailanthus altissima)-though it will also feed more than 70 other plant species, including grapes, hops, and fruit trees-one of the first questions asked was how infested wood should best be handled.Ī study published this month in the open-access Journal of Insect Science provides an official answer: chipping. While enlisting the public’s help in spotting and reporting the pest, research is also underway to examine its biology and behavior and the management practices that will aid in preventing its spread. Law, USDA APHIS PPQ, )Īs the invasive spotted lanternfly ( Lycorma delicatula) has begun to spread in the eastern United States, entomologists, pest management professionals, and government agencies have gone into high gear in an effort to stop it before it marches across the country. A study in Pennsylvania finds that putting infested wood through a wood chipper effectively destroys spotted lanternfly egg masses, and researchers recommend the practice for reducing the potential spread of the pest. The invasive spotted lanternfly ( Lycorma delicatula) lays its eggs in masses, which often resemble splotches of mud, on tree limbs and trunks.
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