Spotted lanternflies are an invasive species native to southeast Asia. (Alaina Davis)
Local wineries are preparing for an insect with a benign-sounding name but one whose potential for damaging grapevines could force them to outsource grapes or raise prices.
Spotted lanternflies are an invasive species that have been seen increasingly in Indiana.
While not harmful to humans, they suck sap out of plants and produce a honeydew that can create mold and curb plant growth. They will feed on up to 20 different tree species, including maples and walnuts — and grapevines.
Jim Butler, president of Butler Winery, said he expects to see the insect at his vineyard in the next couple years, although they haven’t been spotted yet at local wineries. If he finds himself struggling to grow quality grapes, Butler said, he will turn to other vineyards to purchase them.
“When we grow the grapes, we have complete control over how we're growing them, what style we want to produce,” he said. “When we're buying from other growers, we lose that control over the fruit, so the wines would be different, not the same that we've developed here.”
Cody Leaderbrand, winemaker and vineyard manager of Owen Valley Winery, said if spotted lanternflies damage his grapevines, labor and management costs would increase. That could eventually lead to higher prices for his wine.
“We're here to grow grapes and make an authentic product,” Leaderbrand said. “And sometimes the more authentic the product is, or the more carefully it's managed, the more that cost can trickle down to the customer.”
Read more: Invasive insect that harms wine grapes, fruit trees spotted in Indiana
Spotted lanternflies are native to southeast Asia, and were first seen in the U.S. in Pennsylvania in 2014. In 2021, the insect was spotted in Indiana for the first time, in Switzerland County in the southeastern part of the state. Since then, it has been found in 13 other counties, primarily in northeast Indiana. There have been four reports of sightings in Columbus, the closest it’s been seen to Bloomington.
Will Drews, nursery inspector and compliance officer with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, said spotted lanternflies often hitchhike and travel via transport, such as on trucks and trains. He said it’s possible the insect could’ve come into the state through rail lines in northern Indiana, resulting in more reported sightings in the area.
Their preferred host tree is the tree of heaven. Drews and his team have catalogued hundreds of those trees in Indiana, and over 100 in Bloomington. Trees in the tailgating fields on Indiana University’s campus are a prime spot for the insect to be introduced, Drews said.
“People come here from out of state and maybe spend the night,” he said. “If, let's say, an RV parked here, coming from maybe Penn State University, there is the possibility that, depending on the time, they might have some spotted lanternfly individuals hitching a ride over. And these would be the trees they'd probably seek out.”
Drews said spotted lanternflies are more active hitchhikers as adults, with higher travel rates in the late summer and early fall. Their travel patterns line up with IU’s football season and bigger crowds in tailgating fields.
“It could be here already, and we just haven't found it,” Drews said.
To prepare for the lanternfly’s arrival, Butler said he goes through the vineyard almost every day pruning vines and looking out for the insect. He already sprays an insecticide once a year for Japanese beetles. With spotted lanternflies, he might have to spray more than once and be more careful to spray the insecticide at the right time to maximize effectiveness.
Read more: Invasive spotted lanternfly spreading in northern Indiana
Leaderbrand said he doesn’t want to rely too much on using insecticides to remove spotted lanternflies.
“I could napalm the vineyard with insecticide and remove it of most life if I wanted to,” he said. “But at the end of the day, being a good steward to the earth that we participate on and live on (means) making sure that none of these things affect other living organisms. Because insecticides don't just happen where they're sprayed, there's always the runoff with the rain and where down the stream, literally and metaphorically, that would affect humans as well.”
If spotted lanternflies become established in the area, Butler said the vines will slowly lose nutrients and decline in quality.
“In the long run, if we can't grow grapes, we can't have a winery,” he said.
Wineries in Pennsylvania have employed intense prevention efforts, such as heavily spraying insecticides, to curb the negative effects of the invasive species.
Drews said he does high-risk pathway surveys, where he visits potential hotspots for spotted lanternflies. Locations include stadiums, truck stops and railroad corridors. He has also started a few treatment options to attempt to curb the insect's spread. One involves applying an insecticide to trees of heaven that can kill spotted lanternflies on contact. He will also scrape off egg masses to “prevent thousands of individuals from hatching next year.”
You can report sightings of spotted lanternflies on the DNR’s website. Drews said the DNR asks for verification of the sighting, such as a photo. He said it also helps to capture and freeze the damaging pest.
