Invasions & Strategies (October 2021)

Lantern Fly

“Fascinating little moth. It has red underneath its wings!” Insects delight my son and he texted me this photo while we were out of town recently. I too was captivated by it. And then we learned more… Lycorma delicatula, the Spotted Lanternfly. Arriving in the mid-Atlantic in 2014, it’s a nasty invasive pest that poses a major threat to a number of important crops, including apples and grapes, plant nurseries, commercial timber, and other trees, including maples, black walnut, birch and willow.