Spotted Lanternfly Could be Bad News for Some Wisconsin Crops

Monday, August 29th, 2022 -- 9:00 AM

(Bob Hague, WRN) A potentially destructive exotic pest is headed Wisconsin’s way.

The Spotted lanternfly is a native of China that's been found in 12 US states. The US Department of Agriculture says the lanternfly could seriously impact us grape orchard and logging industries if it continues to spread.

P.J. Liesch, the manager of UW Madison's insect diagnostic lab recently told Wisconsin Public Radio it's a matter of when not if the bug arrives here in Wisconsin. He said it's definitely a challenging pest to deal with, and one that could cause problems for operators of Wisconsin orchards and wineries.

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