Lehigh Times

This week Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding, along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Penn State Extension and other agriculture industry stakeholders, gathered at the Indiana County Conservation District to demonstrate how to use a safe trap for pesky spotted lanternflies.

The gathering was a chance to show Pennsylvania residents and businesses how to treat and manage the spotted lanternfly, which is an invasive insect, a Thursday news release on pa.gov said. A circle trap can eliminate large numbers of the lanternflies but is designed to not harm other beneficial pollinating insects or animals.

"If you live in a quarantine zone for the spotted lanternfly, you know well by now that they're a nuisance to outdoor life and are destructive to plant life," Redding said in the release. "Through research, public-private partnerships and boots-on-the-ground efforts we have learned more about this pest and how farmers, business-owners, homeowners and communities can best manage it."

Lanternflies don't survive the winter, but last season the insects laid egg masses of 30 to 60 eggs each that are covered with a protective coating and will hatch this spring if not disposed of, the release said. These masses should be destroyed to prevent large populations.

Those who find spotted lanternflies can also reduce the population by "trapping and squishing them," the release said.

"There are no easy answers when it comes to the spotted lanternfly, and we understand that's hard for people to hear," Rick Roush, dean of the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences, said. "Good research takes time—and funding—but we are making discoveries every day and are sharing those findings with the public and key stakeholders."

A circle trap can be constructed by using items like plastic milk jugs, duct tape, screen wire, twine, hot glue and gallon food-storage bags, the release said. Traps can also be bought at agriculture supply stores. Instructions for how to build a trap are available on the Penn State Extension website.

In March the state expanded its quarantine zone for spotted lanternflies to 45 counties, the release said. The quarantine mandates that moving any spotted lanternfly life stage—or any item that may hold the insect—is prohibited.

For more information, go to agriculture.pa.gov/spottedlanternfly.