The latest info on plant pests, pathogens, and weeds.

Posts Tagged ‘insects’

Register Now for Our August Spotted Lanternfly Webinar – Free Credits Available

Our next spotted lanternfly webinar is coming up on Wednesday, August 13, 2025 at 10am. Hosted by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR), this quarterly webinar series provides stakeholders with the most current information about SLF in Massachusetts. The August session will feature a presentation by Madeline E. Potter, Faculty Specialist for Entomology and […]

Pest Alert Newsletter: June 2025

This is the June 2025 edition of the Mass. Pest Alert newsletter, brought to you by the Massachusetts Dept. of Agricultural Resources. Here are the top 4 things to keep an eye out for this month: Subscribe to receive the newsletter by email. Photo credits: Chris Evans, University of Illinois; Elizabeth Barnes, MDAR; Whitney Cranshaw, […]

What to look for: Spotted lanternfly nymphs

We’ve had a flurry of sightings of spotted lanternfly nymphs the past few weeks. Currently, we are seeing the younger ones, which are black with white spots. They tend to feed on smaller plants like grape vine, bittersweet, and poison ivy, but also the new growth on larger plants like maples and tree-of-heaven. In a […]

Pest Alert Newsletter: May 2025

This is the May 2025 edition of the Mass. Pest Alert newsletter, brought to you by the Massachusetts Dept. of Agricultural Resources. Here are the top 4 things to keep an eye out for this month: Subscribe to receive the newsletter by email. Image credits: Cicada-tdikow, iNaturalist; European hornet-inasiebertl, iNaturalist

Spotted Lanternfly Egg Masses Are Hatching!

Spotted lanternfly nymphs began emerging from their egg masses in Massachusetts late last week. Be on the lookout: At this early stage of their lives, they are small black insects with white spots, and they will often be found on plants like poison ivy, Asiatic bittersweet, and basil, and on the new growth of larger […]

MDAR Pest Alert Newsletter: April 2025

This is the April 2025 edition of the Mass. Pest Alert newsletter, brought to you by the Massachusetts Dept. of Agricultural Resources. Here are the top 4 things to keep an eye out for this month: Photo credits: Cliff Sadof, Purdue University and tdikow, iNaturalist. Subscribe to the newsletter

Emerald ash borer update, resources, and outlook

Emerald ash borer has become widespread in Massachusetts, with more and more people noticing decline or death of their ash trees. If left untreated, emerald ash borer will kill almost all ash trees, but if an infestation is caught early enough, there are effective options for protecting that tree. Here are some resources targeted at […]

Register Now for Our May Spotted Lanternfly Webinar – Free Credits Available

Our next spotted lanternfly webinar is coming up on May 14, 2025. Hosted by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR), this quarterly webinar series will provide you with the most current information about SLF in Massachusetts. The May session will feature a presentation by Brian Eshenaur, Senior Extension Associate for Invasive Species at Cornell […]

MDAR Pest Alert Newsletter: March 2025

This is the March 2025 edition of the Mass. Pest Alert newsletter, brought to you by the Massachusetts Dept. of Agricultural Resources. Here are the top 4 things to keep an eye out for this month: Subscribe

2024-2025 BioBlitz and ID Blitz Highlights

Now that our first ever “Spot Invasive Insects: A Massachusetts BioBlitz” has wrapped up, we wanted to share some of the results. Participants picked trees that are host plants for spotted lanternfly and Asian longhorned beetle and then photographed all the living things or signs of living things they found on those trees. Here’s what […]