New Hampshire is asking residents to photograph and report suspected spotted lanternflies after adults were detected in eight southern communities.
The state's NHBugs information page identifies Salem, where the insect was confirmed in August, along with Atkinson, Hudson, Londonderry, Nashua, Pelham, Plaistow and Windham. Survey and detection work is continuing.
The spotted lanternfly is an invasive insect that feeds on plant sap. It favors the invasive tree-of-heaven but uses many other plants. Grapevines are particularly susceptible to heavy feeding, according to University of New Hampshire Extension guidance.
People can move the insects and their eggs on vehicles, nursery stock and other materials. That means a sighting in one town is useful information, even when it does not establish how large or widespread a population has become.
UNH Extension advises people who see a suspected lanternfly to take clear photographs, record the location and submit a report through NHBugs. It recommends that growers inspect equipment and watch field and vineyard edges, wooded areas and places with tree-of-heaven.