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:- Adams County
- Alleghany County
- Armstrong County
- Beaver County
- Bedford County
- Berks County
- Blair County
- Bucks County
- Butler County
- Cambria County
- Cameron County
- Carbon County
- Centre County
- Chester County
- Clearfield County
- Clinton County
- Columbia County
- Cumberland County
- Dauphin County
- Delaware County
- Fayette County
- Frankling County
- Fulton County
- Huntingdon County
- Indiana County
- Juniata County
- Lackawanna County
- Lancaster County
- Lawrence County
- Lebanon County
- Lehigh County
- Luzerne County
- Lycoming County
- Mifflin County
- Mercer County
- Montgomery
- Monroe County
- Montour County
- Northampton County
- Northumberland County
- Perry County
- Philadelphia County
- Pike County
- Schuylkill County
- Snyder County
- Somerset County
- Union County
- Washington County
- Wayne County
- Westmoreland County
- 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.