Officials want you to destroy these mud-like masses 'before they hatch'
(WJW) — "Destroy them before they hatch": That's the advice from agriculture experts in Ohio and throughout much of the country as temperatures start to warm up.
While these mud-like masses may look harmless, they're actually getting ready to produce a fresh batch of the invasive and damaging spotted lanternfly.
You may remember previous calls for action from the U.S. Department of Agriculture asking people if they saw one to report it and kill it.
The Ohio State University Extension said in a recent post to Facebook, "Now is the time to look for the egg masses of these invasive insects and destroy them before they hatch."
Extension Educator Amy Stone wrote in a recent report that each spotted lanternfly mass typically contains between 30 and 50 eggs.
The egg masses are often found on trees (like the tree of heaven) or man-made surfaces, like grills, vehicles, and outdoor machinery. Essentially, if you haven’t used any of your outdoor items since fall, you should check for the egg masses.
See what the egg masses look like in the slideshow below:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has also previously encouraged those who see these spotted lanternfly egg masses in spring to destroy them.
Native to China, the spotted lanternfly was first reported in the U.S. when a Pennsylvania forester noticed the bug in 2014. It has since spread to at least 17 other states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture: Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The insect feasts off of fruit, ornamental, and woody trees, targeting the sap from over 70 different plant species, PennState Extension explains. They’re able to shoot out a sap, referred to as “honeydew” by entomologists, that can coat the leaves of a plant, blocking photosynthesis and stressing the plant, Shannon Powers, press secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, previously explained to Nexstar.
If you do find a spotted lanternfly egg mass (or the insect in any other phase of its life), you should first report the sighting to state officials. The USDA has a list of state-specific reporting details. If your state is not on that list, consider reaching out to your local or state departments of agriculture or natural resources. Officials will most likely ask for any photos or videos you’ve taken of the egg mass, and encourage you not to move any wood or other possibly-infected materials.
Unless officials instruct you otherwise, once you’ve reported the sighting, you can destroy the egg masses. You’ll need to crush the masses evenly and watch for them to burst open — that’s how you know it’s been done properly. PennState Extension recommends scraping the egg mass into a bag or container of hand sanitizer or rubbing alcohol, and then disposing of the bag or container. The USDA says pressure washing has also been found to be effective in destroying the egg masses from hard surfaces.
Egg masses may be treated with horticultural oils during the winter months or before bud break in the spring, according to the Ohio Department of Agriculture.
You can see photos of full-grown spotted lanternflies below.
At best, the spotted lanternfly can only travel about a mile on its own, and that’s if it gets some help from the wind, Powers explained. Otherwise, it depends on its hitchhiking ability to move around, taking road trips on vehicles, trailers, outdoor equipment, or even hiking humans.
There is no guaranteed way to keep the bug from spreading into new states and regions, but keeping it from hatching in the first place can help.
The USDA considers most states at risk for spotted lanternfly infiltration, with the exception of Alaska, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.