State: Large number of spotted lanternflies reported on Long Island this summer

State officials said Thursday they have received a large number of spotted lanternfly reports from Long Island this summer as they encouraged people to help monitor the invasive insect’s spread throughout the state — though on Long Island, they're only focusing on reports from the East End.

The state’s agriculture industry has so far escaped damage from the large-winged, red-colored sapsucker. But surveillance is continuing with an eye on vulnerable vineyards in Suffolk County and upstate New York.

Five years after it was first detected in New York, scientists and researchers are still learning about the voracious plant-hopper from Asia that can weaken trees and destroy plants with its sharp mouthparts. It also leaves behind a sticky residue known as honeydew that can cause mold growth.

"The insect is very cryptic and very hard to detect at low levels," Christopher Logue, director of plant industry at the state Department of Agriculture and Markets said during a media briefing Thursday. "It is highly likely that the spotted lanternfly probably was here in New York prior to 2020 and we did not have the ability to detect it."

Nationally, the spotted lanternfly has been detected as far west as Indiana and as far south as South Carolina.

Officials are using several methods of surveillance, ranging from citizen reports to the use of traps and collecting environmental DNA.

Environmental DNA is the residue, cells and excrement left behind by the insect on trees and plants. Samples are taken in areas to see if lanternflies had been there, even if there had not been any sightings.

Logue displayed a map that showed clusters of public reports of lanternfly sightings from Long Island to New York City, Westchester and the Hudson Valley — and a smaller number in the western part of the state.

"They are excellent hitchhikers," said Brian Eshenaur, associate director and invasive species integrated pest management coordinator at the Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. During the online briefing he showed a photo of several lanternflies on the back of a car stopped at a light.

They also leave masses of eggs on trees, vehicle wheel wells and even lawn chairs, he said.

"They can lay eggs from September through the first hard freeze," Eshenaur said. "The eggs remain dormant until springtime."

He urged people to check their vehicles and other surfaces for these egg masses and remove them if possible. 

Egg masses contain between 30 and 60 eggs laid in rows, according to Cornell Integrated Pest Management. The female lanternfly covers them with a white putty-like substance that turns to gray and then dark tan over time.

Citizen reports have continued to be key in tracking the path of the lanternfly. Logue and Eshenaur said they do not need reports from the five boroughs of the city, Nassau and most of Suffolk County because they have established the presence of the lanternfly in most locations.

"I know we have seen it as far east as Riverhead and probably a little bit farther out than that," Logue said, adding they would take reports from the East End of Long Island if it’s an area where the lanternfly is not seen routinely.

By Lisa L. Colangelo

lisa.colangelo@newsday.com@lisalcolangelo

Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.