July has brought more than scorching temperatures and humidity to Charlottesville. There has also been a sharp increase in spotted lanternfly sightings.
First found in the United States in Pennsylvania in 2014, the spotted lanternfly is an invasive species from Asia. How the insect arrived in the country is unknown, but it likely entered on imported goods, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Since its original discovery, the SLF has been found in 18 states, including Virginia—which first reported it in 2018.
More than half of Virginia counties and cities now have known SLF populations, including Charlottesville and its surrounding counties. As of this March, Virginia no longer requires quarantine procedures when moving regulated materials from areas where SLF have been spotted…