Spotted Lanternfly Sighting In Gloucester County

GLOUCESTER COUNTY, NJ — Health officials in Gloucester County are asking residents to help identify a new pest that has been spotted in the area. Anyone who visits Pennsylvania is also asked to inspect their car for the insect before returning to New Jersey.

The New Jersey State Department of Agriculture has been surveying and has found individual Spotted Lanternflies at Red Bank Battlefield Park in National Park, according to Gloucester County Freeholder Jim Lavender, liaison to the Department of Parks and the Office of Farmland Preservation.

On Tuesday, Aug. 27, Gloucester County learned it was added to the list of quarantined zones. For more information on what this quarantine entails, refer to the Rutgers NJAES website, https://njaes.rutgers.edu/spotted-lanternfly/, and the NJDA website, https://www.nj.gov/agriculture/divisions/pi/prog/spottedlanternfly.html.

The Department of Agriculture is following up by identifying/locating every Tree of Heaven in Red Bank Battlefield Park, removing those that are less than six inches in diameter. They will then hand herbicide each tree. The bug congregates on this species of tree in August to feed and complete their life cycle.

Health officials in Gloucester County are asking residents to help identify the insect. Anyone who visits Pennsylvania is also asked to inspect their car for the insect before returning to New Jersey.

Anyone who sees the Spotted Lanternfly is asked to kill it. Report any spotted lanternfly sightings to the state Department of Agriculture’s special hotline number 833-BADBUG-0 (833-223-2840) or send an email to SLF-plantindustry@ag.nj.gov.

Egg masses are typically about 1-1.5 inches long and covered with a gray or yellowish-brown, waxy coating. Each egg mass may contain 30 to 50 eggs that will hatch from late April to early May.

Anyone who sees egg masses is asked to scrape them off, double bag them and throw them away. Eggs can also be placed into alcohol, bleach or hand sanitizer to kill them. Watch the instructional video below.

“If everyone has their eyes out for this insect we can help combat its spread,” Lavender said. “The insects do not bite people or pets, but they can destroy crops, fruit trees and hardwoods. If you see one, kill it and report it.”

The Spotted Lanternfly is a threat to over seventy different plant species, including fruit trees, ornamental trees, woody trees, vegetables, herbs and vines, including agricultural crops like grapes and hops.

“The Spotted Lanternfly is a destructive invasive pest that could devastate our quality of life in Gloucester County,” Freeholder Director Robert M. Damminger said. “We are an agricultural county with many different crops that make up a large part of our economy.”

Spotted lanternflies are not known to bite, sting, or attack people, pets or livestock, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Agricultures. It is not known whether they are poisonous when ingested by humans or animals.

The plant hopper is a native to China, India, and Vietnam. Not only does the plant die but the "fermented odor" caused by the feeding, along with the fluid excreted by the insects themselves, promotes mold growth and draws even more insects, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Specimens of any life stage can be turned in to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture’s lab for verification. Residents can use the GPS function or camera on their smartphones to take a photograph of any life stage (including egg masses) and submit picture to: SLF-plantindustry@ag.nj.gov.

Anyone who can’t take a specimen or photograph, should call the New Jersey Spotted Lanternfly Hotline at 1-833-223- 2840 (BADBUG0) and leave a message detailing their sighting and contact information.

For more information, visit nj.gov/agriculture/divisions/pi/prog/spottedlanternfly.html.