Calling Those with Honeysuckle or Cherry Trees

Do you have honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.) and/or any species of cherry (Prunus spp.) growing on your property?

The USDA is seeking locations with these species in Clinton, Franklin, St. Lawrence, and Jefferson Counties, NY, to hang yellow sticky traps to determine if there is evidence of European Cherry Fruit Fly (ECFF) in this region.

    

ECFF is an invasive pest that could have devastating effects on commercial cherry fruit production. It was found in Lockport, NY in 2017 and is known to be present in Ontario, Canada.

The traps are 6” by 8” in size with a small pheromone lure in a yellow plastic canister that would be hung about 8 feet off the ground in or near the host plant and checked every two weeks through early October.

If you are willing to allow a trap to be hung on your property, please contact Vanessa Case who is acting as the USDA Plant Protection & Quarantine Technician for this project at vanessa.case@usda.gov or (518) 837-7060.

Some information about the ECFF can be found here: https://www.aphis.usda.gov/publications/plant_health/2017/alert-ecff.pdf

Honeysuckle ID: https://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=993

Choke cherry is a common cherry species found in and bordering yards: https://dendro.cnre.vt.edu/dendrology/syllabus/factsheet.cfm?ID=238