Lanternflies in Pennsylvania

It’s all hands on deck to eradicate Lanternflies in Pennsylvania. While we are always available to help you with your pest needs, this may be a job for everyone as these invasive pests are now present in 51 of the 67 Pennsylvania counties. The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture includes the following Pennsylvania counties in its 2023 quarantine list:

1. Adams County
2. Alleghany County
3. Armstrong County
4. Beaver County
5. Bedford County
6. Berks County
7. Blair County
8. Bucks County
9. Butler County
10. Cambria County
11. Cameron County
12. Carbon County
13. Centre County
14. Chester County
15. Clearfield County
16. Clinton County
17. Columbia County
18. Cumberland County
19. Dauphin County
20. Delaware County
21. Fayette County
22. Frankling County
23. Fulton County
24. Huntingdon County
25. Indiana County
26. Juniata County
27. Lackawanna County
28. Lancaster County
29. Lawrence County
30. Lebanon County
31. Lehigh County
32. Luzerne County
33. Lycoming County
34. Mifflin County
35. Mercer County
36. Montgomery
37. Monroe County
38. Montour County
39. Northampton County
40. Northumberland County
41. Perry County
42. Philadelphia County
43. Pike County
44. Schuylkill County
45. Snyder County
46. Somerset County
47. Union County
48. Washington County
49. Wayne County
50. Westmoreland County
51. York County

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s 2019 impact study suggests that the Spotted Lanternfly could cost $324 million annually and more than 2,800 jobs. Ways to control this economic pest include physical removal of the pest at any stage of life, removal of the Tree-of-Heaven host tree, and pesticide applications.

At this time of year, the life stage to target is the egg mass. Each egg mass results in about 30 to 50 lanternflies, so its impact is significant. The Spotted Lanternfly can be managed during any of its life stages, however. The first stage are the egg masses found from September to June. Look for a white cluster of about ½ inch. The next stage is called the early stage nymph where the Spotted Lantern fly has the appearance of a black insect with white spots measuring about ⅛” to ¼”. A late stage nymph, found July through September measures about half ½” and is black and red with white spots. The adult Lantern fly is found July through December and is about 1” long. It is a distinctive, winged pest.

These pests were first discovered in Berks County, before spreading to much of the rest of Pennsylvania. Feel free to join us in our quest to solve the pest problem! More information is available on the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture website.