Spotted lanternflies are an invasive species native to southeast Asia. (Lance Cheung / USDA)
The City of Bloomington is preparing for the arrival of spotted lanternflies, an invasive species capable of causing damage to the agricultural industry.
While not harmful to humans, spotted lanternflies suck sap out of plants and produce a honeydew that can create mold and curb plant growth. They will feed on more than 30 different tree species, including maples and walnuts, and even grapevines.
“The winery with grapes, that's one of their target host species, but there could be some indirect costs, generally to all of us,” said Haskell Smith, urban forester. “Agriculture is a big one, orchards. There's a lot of smaller farm communities around here, too, in the surrounding area that it could impact.”
Native to southeast Asia, the insect was first spotted in Pennsylvania in 2014 and in Indiana in 2021. Since then, there have been hundreds of sightings in northern Indiana and over 50 in southern Indiana by the Ohio River. It has also been spotted in Bartholomew County in Columbus, the closest it’s been seen to Bloomington.
Read more: Local wineries on watch for damaging new insect to southern Indiana
Spotted lanternflies often hitchhike and travel via transport, such as on trucks, trains and cars. Smith said with surrounding highways, it’s only a matter of time before they reach Bloomington.
“Being found in Bartholomew County, with State Route 46 pretty heavily trafficked, it could be next year, could be five years,” he said. “We don't really know, it could already be here.”
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has started to catalogue trees of heaven, the insect’s preferred host plant and also an invasive species across the state. More than 100 of them have been confirmed in Bloomington alone. Smith said he’s working with the DNR to create an inventory of the trees and monitor them for potential sightings and adapt accordingly.
“Tree of heaven, of itself, is another invasive plant, and treating it is tricky on its own,” he said. “It's not like we can just cut it down and walk away. It takes a herbicide application, usually to kill the roots, so pairing two invasives together is tough.”
With limited resources, Smith said it would be difficult to remove all of the trees of heaven in Bloomington, but it might be possible to remove a few located on public property.
Read more: Invasive Insect That Harms Wine Grapes, Fruit Trees Spotted In Indiana
“It's an invasive species we've tried to maintain for years,” he said. “There's a couple different schools of thought out there to keep some of the male trees alive, to be able to easily monitor spotted lanternfly infestation. So that's potential that we keep a couple of those as an indicator species.”
If you see the insect, the city recommends collecting it, taking a photo and killing it if possible. You can also report sightings of spotted lanternflies on the DNR’s website. In the meantime, Smith recommends citizens familiarize themselves with the insect and what it looks like at different stages of its life.
“I don't expect an overnight fix by any means,” he said, “but hopefully we can hit the ground running and then use this as a template for whatever's next, because there's probably something out there.”
