Red Spotted Lanternfly

Red spotted lanternfly nymphs are black and wingless with white spots. Eventually, the black turns to red patches (pictured above) in the final immature stages.

 

Red spotted lanternflies grow to be about an inch long as an adult, and they develop two sets of wings. The hindwings are red and white with black spots; the forewings are gray with black spots. When folded, the forewings cover the hindwings, making the red spotted lanternfly look similar to a moth. Although might be mistaken for a moth or butterfly, and their name calls them a fly, they are actually a planthopper. They can jump and they can fly.

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Red spotted lanternflies are an invasive species, with no real local natural predators to curb population growth.  They are easily mistakenly transported and they lay eggs in masses of 30-50 at a time, which are coated with a substance that camouflages them to look like mud, leaving them largely undetected. This unchecked population growth adds to their destructive potential.

 

Red spotted lanternflies weaken and kill plants and trees directly by sucking out the sap, and the waste they excrete on those plants encourages a black ashy mold. This mold is a fungal disease that decreases the plant's ability to photosynthesize and, therefore, stay alive. While they prefer certain types of vegetation, they will feed on a huge variety of fruit trees, woody trees, ornamental trees, vines of all kinds, vegetables, herbs, and grain crops. They will even infest indoor potted plants. Additionally, they produce a sugary liquid that attracts other insects, like wasps, bees and ants to the area.

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The red spotted lanternfly is so destructive that the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VADCS) has imposed a quarantine in the past to curb the spread and impact of these pests. There are many counties in affected areas that maintain quarantines or other regulations to prevent the spread of red spotted lanternflies due to their destructive potential.