![]() ![]() "That way, we're targeting spotted lanternflies and nothing else." That may sound brutal, but it's crucial to ensure that the wasps won't attack important noninvasive species in addition to the lanternflies.īut scientists like Leach remain positive that this plan will work.īiological control "is a really common practice, and it's probably the thing that holds the most promise for us as far as long-term, sustainable control goes," says Leach. "We put the proposed candidate natural enemy (in this case a parasitic wasp) in an arena, often a tube or a petri dish, with a stages of the insect that we're testing," Hoelmer says. Hoelmer notes that they have to conduct experiments to test the wasps with other types of insects they may encounter in the ecosystem. There’s still a lot of work left to ensure that the wasps will be a helpful addition to the ecosystem. BIIRU scientists don’t expect the wasps will be released for several years. They won't attack humans or pets, for example. He stresses that these wasps are different from yellow jackets, hornets, or paper wasps. "There are hundreds of thousands of species, and most of them are so small that we don't even notice them." "These kinds of wasps are all around us," BIIRU research entomologist Kim Hoelmer tells Popular Mechanics. Currently, the USDA is holding two species of wasp-one that feasts on the nymphs and another that feasts on egg masses-in quarantine facilities at the BIIRU lab in Newark and a lab in Massachusetts. When those eggs hatch, the hungry wasp larvae devour the nymphs from the inside out. They lay eggs inside baby spotted lanternflies, which are called nymphs. These wasps ensure that lanternflies meet a gruesome end. Scientists believe the special wasp assassins, which are native to China and only hunt spotted lanternflies, could be a useful tool in eradicating the insect. States like California and New York, which have prominent wine regions, are extremely worried about the lanternflies, Leach says. They’re expected to cause billions of dollars in damages in Pennsylvania alone, according to the PDA, stoking fears that they may spread to states with robust agricultural industries. "We're seeing damage across a lot of different plant species," Leach says. ![]() ![]() Scientists fear they have the potential to devastate a number of valuable crops, such as apples, grapes for wine (!) and hops for beer (!!). They swarm in vast numbers, have no natural predators, and lay gray egg masses of 30 to 50 eggs, which lie flat on tree trunks and look similar to lichen. Worst of all, spotted lanternflies are especially tough to kill. On behalf of our fellow Pennsylvanians, we're sorry. Trust us: Popular Mechanics HQ is smack dab in the lanternfly epicenter. (If you have a friend or family member who lives in Pennsylvania, you've probably been hearing them talk about nothing else besides these damn bugs for a year. From there, they’ve spread across the state and slowly trickled into Delaware, New Jersey and Virginia. They're native to China, India, and Vietnam but were first discovered in the U.S. The lanternfly is not a fly, but instead, a type of insect called a planthopper. Researchers at the Beneficial Insects Introduction Research Unit (BIIRU), a subdivision of the PADA, in Newark, Delaware, have come up with a plan to eradicate the invasive insect once and for all, using a curious weapon: wasps. The Pensylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) is waging an all-out war on a tiny insect called the spotted lanternfly ( Lycorma delicatula). Then, squash that sucker without remorse.ĭesperate times call for desperate measures.Report sightings of the dreaded insects to the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture by calling this number: 1-888-4BADFLY.Easily identifiable by its gray, spotted wings and bright red underwings, the insect could threaten billions of dollars worth of crops in Pennsylvania, such as apples, grapes, and hops.The invasive spotted lanternfly has invaded Pennsylvania and threatens to spread into neighboring states.
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