MICHAEL LEBLANC, Staff Writer
You may have seen these little bugs flying around recently. This is known as a spotted lanternfly. You may have been told to kill these bugs anytime you see them, leaving you confused. In September there was an influx of these bugs, but as October approached, the weather grows colder, and there is more awareness about them, you know longer need to kill ten bugs a day but only one bug every so often. If you are still unfamiliar with these bugs, read on to learn everything you need to know.
LANTERNFLY GROWTH
Lanternflies are special as they have a year-long cycle. This cycle usually starts with new flies being born in November and then beginning to grow by March or April. Now, in November, the flies have gone down significantly. Some of them are resting and laying their eggs.
According to the chart above, they begin to lay their eggs in November, which restarts the entire year-long cycle. This is something a lot of people are getting confused about. Don't be surprised to see another burst of these insects by April of 2022.
HOW THE OUTBREAK BEGAN
Although it is not certain how the massive outbreak began, the population of the spotted lanternfly has been rising dramatically over the past few years. They were first spotted in Pennsylvania back in 2014. Some sources show they may have been accidentally transported from their original native place in China to the eastern shores of the United States. Since then they have been multiplying. April of 2021 people became aware of the fact that they were overpopulated.
WHAT TO EXPECT FOR 2022
Assuming that the bugs are currently laying their eggs ready to start another outbreak, we should expect more lanternflies coming in April. In the meantime, there is time to plan and to find ways to trap them. Some people have already made traps to stop them!
METHOD #1: STICKY TARP ON A TREE
This person wrapped a piece of a sticky substance around a tree, which already is a good idea to catch lanternflies. They also put a mesh layer over the trap to protect other harmless bugs from getting stuck.
METHOD #2: STICKY BARRIER
Instead of doing something where the lanternfly is stuck onto the tree, mix it up and make a trap where the lanternfly will get stuck off of the tree. Find something to wrap the tree with that isn’t sticky, like cotton fiber. Next, grab something to use to stick to the fiber. Make sure some of the sticky tarp is off of the fiber, once they begin to climb up the tree they’ll get blocked by the fiber and will then proceed to jump off of the tree, but stuck onto the tarp.
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