I saw my first Lantern fly this morning.

Ruth n Jersey

Well-known Member
This fly is beautiful but it is a very destructive pest. Brought over here by accident from China, or other Asian countries. It sucks the life out of grapes, other fruits, Maple trees and a host of others. It also poops like crazy and then causes a harmful mold to form on the trees.
It was found in PA a few years ago and now it is travelling north. This is the first one I've seen in my yard.
I have a lot of Maple trees in my yard.
This one won't be doing any damage now or in the future. latern fly.JPG
 

Moth are ugly in general, but that is the ugliest moth I have ever seen.

How big is it, Ruth?
 

This fly is beautiful but it is a very destructive pest.
New Jersey officials encourage residents to “destroy” the spotted lanternfly and/or its eggs if spotted, and report the spotting via email at Slf-plantindustry@ag.nj.gov or by calling 609-406-6943. The Tree of Heaven seems to be its preferred laying spot, and since surveying and treatments began in the state in 2018, more than 200,000 Trees of Heaven on almost 19,000 acres have been treated.

If you see a spotted lanternfly somewhere other than New York or New Jersey, contact your state’s agriculture department. “It will take a combined effort to help keep this pest from spreading,” New Jersey Department of Agriculture secretary Douglas Fisher said in a statement.
 
If I saw one, I'd catch it hopefully and feed it to Gertie, our black & white garden spider. We're trying to decide how to keep her over our mild winter now. She's outside on the back deck door and has had two cocoons of eggs!
 


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