Spotted Lanternfly Found In Central Bucks County

The spotted lanternfly has been found in central Bucks County, according to officials.

The United States Department of Agriculture has confirmed the presence of the dangerously-invasive lanternfly in three areas of Doylestown Township: Font Hill, Hospital Drive and New Britain Road near the Rt. 611 Bypass.

Sightings of the fly in northern Bucks County were already confirmed this summer, prompting a quarantine in Springfield, East Rockhill, West Rockhill, Perkasie and Sellersville. Sightings have also been confirmed in Montgomery and Berks counties.

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, which in August announced the local towns under quarantine, has not confirmed if this development now means that Doylestown Township is under quarantine as well.

However, Doylestown Township Manager Stephanie Mason said she believes the township will now be included in the quarantine. Representatives from US Dept. of Agriculture indicated that the quarantine line will be moved further east to incorporate the township soon, she said.

Under quarantine, movements of material that could spread the pest are restricted. Nymph and adult spotted lanternflies cause extensive damage when they feed, sucking sap from stems and leaves and causing the plant to ooze and weep.

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.

The roughly inch-long plant hopper is a native to China, India, and Vietnam. There are 25 species of plants in Pennsylvania which the lanternfly has been known to feed off of. Click here for more details from the state Department of Agriculture.

Here is what they look like. (More images can be found here.)

In addition to ecological degradation, the lanternfly can have a significant economic impact. The bug threatens Pennsylvania's $20.5 million grape industry, $134 million apple industry, $24 million stone fruit industry, and $12 billion hardwood industry, agriculture officials said.

Bucks County residents who find spotted lanternflies are asked to take a photograph if possible, immediately destroy them, and then alert the State Department of Agriculture at (717) 787-4737.

Image via Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0