16 August 2024
Although the variety of grownup noticed lanternflies (Lycorma delicatula) is rising this month in Pittsburgh, their inhabitants doesn’t match the invasion we noticed a 12 months in the past. Among the many many causes for this completely happy information is that native bugs are consuming them.
On Wednesday Kalehism Kheshgi discovered a small praying mantis consuming a noticed lanternfly on Carnegie Mellon’s campus.
A number of species of praying mantids have been imported for pest management: Inexperienced ones are from Europe, brown ones are from China. If the brown mantids have deep ancestral data, they may acknowledge the lanternfly as meals from dwelling. 😉
Spiders, yellowjackets, wheel bugs and birds (together with northern cardinals!) all eat noticed lanternflies. For images of the devouring, see this 2022 article.
