Light brown apple moth may not be so bad

A story in the San Francisco Chronicle yesterday called into question the current USDA and CDFA attempts to eradicate the light brown apple moth in Bay Area communities. According to UC Santa Cruz botanist Daniel Harder, cited by reporter Jane Kay, "It's not such a nasty pest."

The reporter also spoke to UC Davis entomology professor James Carey. He said the plan to completely eradicate LBAM "won't work."

"The pest has been here so long and is so widespread . . . it's virtually impossible to eradicate them," Carey is quoted.

UC integrated pest management specialist Frank Zalom agreed, according to the article, that it's better to try to suppress - and not eradicate - the moth in urban areas.

"Using pheromones over urban areas runs into expense and conflict," he is quoted. "I think they should be considering other options."

A male and a female LBAM.

Read more