PORTLAND, N.Y. — During May members of the Cornell Lake Erie Regional Grape Program set up 7 traps in the region to monitor for the presence of Spotted Lanternfly.  The New York State Integrated Pest Management program has provided both circle traps and sticky band traps to deploy in the area in an effort to detect the pest as early as possible if/when it arrives in the region.  Neither of these types of traps include pheromones that would draw the pest in but are designed to capture it as it naturally moves up the tree.  The locations were selected by observing the locations of vineyards in relation to major transportation lines including I-90, railways, trucking companies/rest stop, and even the Dunkirk airport.  The traps will be monitored weekly now through the season keeping in mind the growth stage expected to be present each week.  Currently the egg masses if present would be hatching to reveal the first instar.  At each site we tried to find a Tree of Heaven to put the trap on because it is a preferred host for Spotted Lanternfly.  Some are on different types of trees if there were no TOH located at the site.

Tree of Heaven is an aggressive and invasive deciduous tree. It looks very similar to sumac. Its pinnately compound leaves are also similar to black walnut and ash. If you want to scout for established spotted lanternfly in your area, this is a great place to look.

If you find a pest that you think might be Spotted Lanternfly please take a picture, try to capture it/kill it If possible, collect the insect. Place in a bag and freeze, or in a jar with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer.

Note the location (street address and zip code, intersecting roads, landmarks, or GPS coordinates), and contact any of our team members to help with identification and report it.  You can use this QR code to report the sighting directly to New York State Ag and Markets.

Our best chance of preventing damage to vineyards is early detection and strong cooperation.

The Lake Erie Regional Grape Program is a cooperative effort between Cornell and Penn State Universities; the participating Cornell Cooperative Extension Associations of Chautauqua, Erie, Niagara and Cattaraugus Counties in New York and Erie County in Pennsylvania; and participating industry partners National Grape Cooperative (Welch’s), Constellation Brands and Walkers Fruit Basket.  The LERGP extension team provides research-based educational programming for commercial grape growers throughout the year at venues across the Lake Erie grape belt.  For more information on LERGP, call 716-792-2800 or visit our website at http://lergp.cce.cornell.edu/

–Kim Knappenberger
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Cornell Cooperative Extension