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State warns residents to look out for invasive spotted lanternfly

Agriculture officials are asking residents to report sightings of the adult spotted lanternfly, which has been found for the first time in North Carolina. Image courtesy of Joy Goforth.

State officials say they are ramping up surveillance of the invasive spotted lanternfly, which has been detected for the first time in the state near Kernersville.

Joy Goforth is a plant pest administrator with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. Goforth says the spotted lanternfly poses a serious threat to the state's wine and grape industries, and can also damage numerous species including apples, pears, and roses. She warns homeowners that honeydew produced by the lanternfly can attract stinging insects, and lead to objects being covered by a fungal disease known as sooty mold.

In an agricultural version of “if you see something, say something,” Goforth is urging residents to be on the lookout for the pest. 

"It's a leaf-hopper, it's about the size of your thumb, and it's grey with spots, and on the underside of their wings is a very distinctive red color," says Goforth. 

The Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services website features a reporting tool for people to submit sightings and photos.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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