Spotted lanternfly is in West Milford
NEW JERSEY. The state has a campaign to stomp out the invasive insects.
| 16 Aug 2023 | 08:29
West Milford Environmental Commission chairman Steve Sangle and his wife, Janice, report that West Milford is being infiltrated with spotted lanternflies.
Sangle found and destroyed four of them on the deck of their Pinecliff Lake home.
He is very concerned about the damage the insects will do to the environment.
Spotted lanternflies reproduce rapidly and cause serious damage to trees. In addition to eating plants, they leave behind sugary excrement called honeydew, which promotes growth of sooty mold and attracts other insects.
They do not harm people or animals.
The insect is indigenous to parts of China and Vietnam. It spread to Japan and South Korea and was first recorded in the United Stares in 2014.
The state Department of Agriculture urges residents to kill spotted lanternflies when they see them.
Adult spotted lanternflies have a black head, grey wings and red hind wings. They lay egg masses containing 30 to 50 eggs, often covered with a gray mud-like coating.