OT: Lantern Flies: How bad you got them?

[Kitaman]

A couple of months ago I was sitting on my deck and an insect landed right in front of me. Actually thought it was a different looking cicada. I brushed it away. Well two months later I have to sit with a fly swatter and bug spray. Went to a restaurant in Fairfield County on the water and the place was infested with dead bugs on the ground. At this rate it feels like these bugs are going to win, because of overwhelming numbers. WTF!! All of a sudden I'm dealing with this new invasive bug multiplying all over the place (I got a few trees).

By the way I'm not removing any outdoor spider webs unless necessary. I've got one by the steps that creates large elaborate webs capturing a few. Weird but the spiders and I are working together.

Just curious how bad is the problem where you live and how do you cope other than foot stomping all over the place.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

I just let them be. As my friend says: “they get a bad rap but we don’t know their side of the story.”

 

[UConnTrumbull]

They seem to be all along the coastline. I don’t notice them as much inland.

 

[GlastonTim]

I’ve seen 1 in South Glastonbury.

 

[aceboon]

They're out of control in Norwalk, they have no hesitation in flying right up on you and reserving space. I remember when they first popped up a few years ago and the news described them as a once every 20 years type thing, now its every year come late August/September.

 

[karstenkibbe]

In Stamford. All over my deck and trees for the last 4-6 weeks. Just south of the Merritt.

 

[Zanzman]

I’ seen them in South Windsor

 

[storrsroars]

It was awful here last year. I only had a couple in my yard, but when I was out walking client dogs, I'd see trees covered in them. Downtown you'd see piles of them squashed on sidewalks and steps. Couple of times I went to Heinz Field for a Pitt game, there were at least 10K outside the stadium between dead and alive. There were outside walls where you couldn't see parts of the concrete because it was covered by them.

They're still around, but not in nearly the numbers as last year. I believe birds figured out they are tasty. And there are virtually no Hey Adriens around here. Everyone from 4 to 104 is on board with storming the things to oblivion. You'll also see a lot of trees with sticky tape around their trunks which has captured thousands of the things so they couldn't breed. You can also kill them with diluted Dawn dish liquid and water, which will immobilize the pests but not harm the trees or any other living thing.

One thing you can do to help - if you have a "tree of heaven" in your yard or see one on public property,, cut it down and burn the thing. That's they're favorite tree/weed. You can also find photos online of what their eggs look like (kinda like the green fungus you see on trees, but grey and often is a geometric pattern).

Kill 'em all. They're bad for forests and crops.

 

[fatlucy]

Birds have started to eat them. Won’t be an issue for long.

 

[InKembaITrust]

I had an INSANE amount in my backyard this past spring/summer in Virginia, mainly because there was a tree of heaven on the very border of my yard. They're attracted to the sap, which drips everywhere and leaves a dark colored mold behind that kills your yard.

Horrible invasive tree that we ultimately chopped down. There goes $1,500, but hopefully it resolves the lantern fly issue. No joke, there were thousands of them covering the tree.

 

[Fishy]

I’d never seen one until three weeks ago when my brother in law saw one on my deck. Since then, if I go outside, I will see a dozen immediately.

I shoot them with a salt gun, but they are incredibly stupid - I was stripping paint from a door with a heat gun and they kept landing right near the gun. I roasted them.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

I had an INSANE amount in my backyard this past spring/summer in Virginia, mainly because there was a tree of heaven on the very border of my yard. They're attracted to the sap, which drips everywhere and leaves a dark colored mold behind that kills your yard.

Horrible invasive tree that we ultimately chopped down. There goes $1,500, but hopefully it resolves the lantern fly issue. No joke, there were thousands of them covering the tree.

For anyone that has these trees on their property, DO NOT just cut them down. You need to kill the tree with herbicide before cutting it down. If not, it will sprout tons of new trees 50 feet in every direction. Some tree companies will tell you it’s not necessary, that is a lie because they’re lazy. My in laws have a nightmare on their hands because of it now.

 

[UCTitleTown]

They swarmed all over my building at work a month ago, I saw tons at the beach in Westbrook last weekend (they seem to like the beach areas), and one was in my car today. They're established everywhere. Kill them whenever you see them.