One of the perks of the Elizabethtown College campus is the abundance of wildlife. After all day
glued to computer and phone screens, seeing the cherry blossom trees around the Schlosser Loop
and squirrels running across the Dell certainly helps one to relieve the ever-present stress off of
their shoulders. However, a relatively new insect on campus is causing more trouble than the
environment aesthetic provides.
Everyone has seen the spotted lanternflies on their trek across campus, but some may be unaware
of how harmful the flies are.
The lanternfly originated in Asia and was brought over to Berks County, Pa. in a shipment to a
garden center. Since then, the species has invaded Pennsylvania and surrounding states, hurting
all types of trees and other plants. Early research shows that they may have a preference for fern
or maple but not enough has been done to properly draw a conclusion.
Associate professor of biology Dr. David Bowne seems to be the College’s resident expert on the
spotted lanternfly.
In fact, after walking into the ecology classroom, students are greeted by a glowing red poster
that exclaims, “STOP THIS INVADER!” It details pictures of various types of the fly and
explanations of what to do if spotted.
He explains that the spotted lanternfly is a type of true bug, meaning that they are sucking
insects. They use a small needle that they inject into plants to steal sugar water, thus creating
wounds while secreting a substance called honeydew. The honeydew allows for the perfect place
for fungi to grow.
“Lanternflies can harm the plant directly, but it is now creating an environment where a plant
pathogen can get in and cause dangers,” Bowne said.
While Bowne explains that there are not many ways to stop the spread, there are still a few
options. So far, it seems that the spotted lanternflies’ preferred tree is the Tree of Heaven, an
extremely common plant because it is also an invasive species that was brought to North
America in the late 1700s. One way to effectively kill the plants is to use insecticides on plants
of which they are found, such as the Tree of Heaven.
“That’s something that could be implemented here on campus,” Bowne said.
Pennsylvania has issued a kill order for the spotted lanternflies. They insist that residents are to
kill the flies and report it to their hotline (1-888-4BADFLY). However, Bowne explains why this
method alone will not stop them.
“If we contained it early, that was when we had the most luck of stopping them. I could kill a
hundred, but there are a thousand still out there,” Bowne said.
More research still needs to be done on the spotted lanternfly and how it operates. Pennsylvania
State University has led efforts with biocontrols, like fungi, that have promising results.
However, until an effective solution is found, the best thing for students to do if they spot a
lanternfly is to simply kill on sight.
