The spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) is a species of planthopper indigenous to parts of China and Vietnam. It was accidentally introduced into South Korea and has spread invasively to Japan and the United States, where it is often referred to by the acronym "SLF". Its preferred host is the also invasive tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima), but it also feeds on other trees, and on crops including soybean, grapes, stone fruits, and Malus species. In its native habitat, L. delicatula populations are regulated by parasitic wasps. The spotted lanternfly's life cycle is often centered on its preferred host, Ailanthus altissima, but L. delicatula can associate with more than 173 plants. Early life stages (instars) of the spotted lanternfly are characterized by spotted black and white nymphs that develop a red pigmentation and wings as they mature. Early life instars have a large host range that narrows with maturation. Adult spotted lanternflies have a black head, grey fore wings, and red hind wings. Adults do not have any specialized feeding associations with herbaceous plants but cause extensive damage to crops and ornamental plants. The piercing wounds caused by their mouthparts and the honeydew waste they excrete are harmful to the health of host plants. They feed on the sap of host plants, including the tree of heaven, which is also invasive in the United States. The spotted lanternfly does not pose direct danger to humans through biting or stinging. Spotted lanternflies lay egg masses containing 30–50 eggs, often covered with a grayish mud-like coating. The species was introduced into South Korea in 2006 and Japan in 2009, where it has since been considered a pest. L. delicatula is also referred to as the spot clothing wax cicada ("chu-ki" or "banyi-la-chan" in Chinese) and the Chinese blistering cicada ("ggot-mae-mi" 꽃매미 in Korean). It is also referred to as the red-bellied flycatcher (シタベニハゴロモ in Japanese), spotted fulgora (fulgore tacheté in French), and the spotted lantern (chinche linterna manchada in Spanish). In September 2014, L. delicatula was first recorded in the United States, and as of 2022, it is considered an invasive species in much of the Northeastern United States, rapidly spreading south and west. L. delicatula's egg masses are the primary vector of spread, with Ailanthus altissima populations seen as a risk factor for further infestation globally. Ongoing pest control efforts have sought to limit population growth, due to the threat L. delicatula poses to global agricultural industries. Parts of the United States have undergone massive pest control efforts to cull the spotted lanternfly's population. However, this process indirectly harms other species.
Taxonomy and discovery Lycorma delicatula is a species in the genus Lycorma, in the planthopper family Fulgoridae, subfamily Aphaeninae. Species within this genus are found in Asia. Taxonomic classification places three other species (L. imperialis (White, 1846), L. meliae Kato, 1929, and L. punicea (Hope, 1843) as closely related to the spotted lanternfly. L. delicatula was originally described by Adam White in 1845 as Aphaena delicatula, and the first scientific collections were made outside of Nanking, China. The etymology of the species name is not explained, but would fit with a diminutive Latin adjective in nominative singular feminine delicatula which could allude to its delicate appearance, although it has been claimed as meaning "luxurious". White described the species as similar to Aphaena variegata, another planthopper native to Asia, and referenced a prior description by the collector George Tradescant Lay in his initial classification of the spotted lanternfly. In 1863, the species was reclassified as Lycorma delicatula by Carl Stål when that genus was first defined. In the same work, he also newly described Lycorma jole Stål, 1863 from "India Orientalis", noting differential aspects such as green-olivaceous forewings and being slightly larger (as translated in Distant, 1906). Another, originally Aphaena operosa Walker, 1858 from "North China" had been described several years earlier, for example reddish-brown "testaceous" or "lurid" forewings but had already been revised as a junior synonym in an earlier work by Stål, 1862. However, some works treat these other historical descriptions as additional subspecies, namely: Lycorma delicatula jole Stål, 1863, and Lycorma delicatula operosa (Walker, 1858). In 2019, the genome of L. delicatula was fully sequenced, with Aphaena amabilis, and Pyrops candelaria both being classified as close relatives. This series of studies together help characterise the genetic diversity in South east Asian lineages, and the possible origins of introductions beyond the native range. However, none of these latter studies indicate substantial divergences of native populations that would warrant recognition of subspecies.
Description
Adult L. delicatula measure about 25 millimetres (1 in) long and 12 millimetres (1⁄2 in) wide. Adult lanternflies have a black head and gray-brown forewings adorned with black spots. White's original account identified L. delicatula as having a minimum of 20 black spots, with six spots located on the anterior margin of the forewings.
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