With infestation of the Spotted Lanternfly in the United States, residents across Niagara need to be vigilant in watching for signs of the invasive insect establishing a population here, a representative of the Sudbury-based Invasive Species Centre (ICC) says.
“In fact, there's a pretty big breeding population in Buffalo, New York, and so it is quite literally at our doorstep, very close to the border, said Emily Posteraro, an ICC program development coordinator. “It doesn't necessarily need to be at the border for it to get here, but that doesn't exactly put our minds at ease either.”
Posteraro was speaking at a workshop at the Fonthill branch of the Lincoln Pelham Public Library on Oct. 3, and was detailing how residents can play a role in preventing the introduction and the spread of the invasive insect, which feeds of the sap of leaves and stems of host plants, in Niagara.
First identified in Pennsylvania in 2014, the Spotted Laternfly, if it established itself here, it could wreak havoc on the region’s agricultural sector including its share of a $5.49-billion grape and wine industry in Ontario.
“For whatever reason, it seems to just really badly weaken and outright kill grapevines,” Posteraro said.
The Spotted Lanternfly meets the centre’s criteria as an invasive species, she said, as “it is both non-native to the area, so introduced to an ecosystem outside of its native range, and it has negative impacts on the ecology, economy and or society in its introduced range. It is native to southeast Asia and can be found in China, Taiwan, and Vietnam.”
There has already been evidence of the insect making its way to Niagara with “interceptions” in Pelham and Fort Erie. In the Pelham example, a live insect was found in a shipment at a floral distributor in Fonthill. In Fort Erie, there were two cases of dead insects being found while a third in September 2023 was a sighting when one of the insects flew through the window of a vehicle crossing the Peace Bridge between Fort Erie and Buffalo.
And with Spotted Lanternfly eggs able to survive winters with temperatures as low as -26 C, there is no cold weather advantage for southern Ontario.
“If you remember the winter we had this past year, it was very mild,” Posteraro said. “Unfortunately, that's probably going to become a more common occurrence with climate change.”
Southern Ontario is also home to one of the insect’s favourite hosts, the Tree of Heaven, itself an invasive species that was introduced to the area as an ornamental tree and is now the fastest growing tree in North America.
“(Spotted Lanternfly) don't need it to survive, but again, it doesn't help that it's here, because they do show a preference for it,” Posterara said.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is the federal body that is keeping tabs on invasive species in Canada including the Spotted Lanternfly. There are four categories under which the agency logs activity, including:
• Sighting: Reports of Spotted Lanternfly in Canada the CFIA is aware of, including those made on public reporting sites (e.g. iNaturalist Canada, Facebook, etc.). Sightings are not confirmed by the CFIA.
• Interception: Live Spotted Lanternfly, confirmed by the CFIA, in contained situations (e.g., warehouse) with no evidence of release to the Canadian environment; and/or dead Spotted Lanternfly, confirmed by the CFIA.
• Detection: Live Spotted Lanternfly, confirmed by the CFIA, in the Canadian environment.
• Established population: Evidence of a reproducing population in the Canadian environment, confirmed by the CFIA.
“We like to say that if you spot it, we want you to snap it, catch it, and report it,” Posterara said.
The best way to spot the Spotted Lanternfly is to learn how to recognize it through research or attending information sessions. It is important to learn how the insect looks at all its stages, especially the egg stage.
Photos (“snap it”) are helpful but the CFIA needs a physical specimen to classify the find as a “detection,” though Posterara cautioned that no live specimens should be transported.
More information on the Spotted Lantern Fly can be found at inspection.canada.ca. Sightings can be reported to the CFIA or other sites including EDDmapS, iNaturalist Canada or Facebook. Sighting to those sites, however, are not confirmed by the CFIA.
