/2024/10/29/swarms-of-invasive-spotted-lanternfly-continue-to-spread-across-d-c/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=swarms-of-invasive-spotted-lanternfly-continue-to-spread-across-d-c DC Neighborhood Stories from American University Wed, 30 Oct 2024 06:38:36 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 /2024/10/29/swarms-of-invasive-spotted-lanternfly-continue-to-spread-across-d-c/#comment-14218 Wed, 30 Oct 2024 06:38:36 +0000 /?p=19218#comment-14218 We take care of a nature preserve in Princeton, NJ, called Herrontown Woods. We had lots of spotted lanternflies a few years back, but their population has crashed. I just saw a few this year, huddled on the last few sprouts of Ailanthus, the tree they gravitate to. I’d guess that predators have upped their game. If only the same could be said for the many other invasive species that continue to dominate without any clear counter force. The highly visible spotted lanternfly, arriving with such fanfare, has receded as a threat, while the far more stealthy Emerald Ash Borer still wreaks havoc, killing many thousands of trees, and it looks like an introduced microscopic nematode will devastate our beech trees as well. What cannot be seen often proves to be the most dangerous, with rising levels of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere being the most dramatic example. International trade remains a free for all, transporting species helter skelter from one continent to another. Looks like we got lucky with spotted lanternfly, but with so many other introduced species, our senses, and our sense, fail us.

]]> /2024/10/29/swarms-of-invasive-spotted-lanternfly-continue-to-spread-across-d-c/#comment-14197 Tue, 29 Oct 2024 20:24:16 +0000 /?p=19218#comment-14197 Fascinating article with lots of good information! I will be on the lookout for the spotted lanternfly!!

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