We are currently looking for volunteers in New York to help monitor Spotted Lanternfly by putting up survey traps on tree-of-heaven stands this spring and monitoring the traps in the fall. Oftentimes invasive species management can be seen as all doom and gloom, that the scary plant/fish/fungus/insect is coming to destroy your forest/yard/lake/home/livelihood and the world will never be the same. Sometimes these causes of concern do not pan out and the predictions of ecological devastation can be exaggerated. Sometimes, they are not. One we really hope is an exaggeration is the spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula). Native to China, Vietnam, and India, it primarily feeds on tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima) but ravishes apples, walnuts, grapes, stonefruit, hops, and just about every native hardwood we have. It was first discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014 and has since spread to New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. A single, dead individual was recently found in New York, but they are expected to continue their spread this year and we want to be ready to find them. As with all invasives, by monitoring the spread we are better able to jump on and control new infestations.
Spotted Lanternfly Trap Monitors will have to attend a half-day training on Saturday May 12 1:00 - 3:00. Those interested in volunteering for this program should send an email to [email protected]. |