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| Newly hatched brown marmorated stink bugs. J. Schaeffer |
Circle the Wagons! The next generation of invasive brown marmorated stink bugs is upon us. We found these on the underside of sweetgum leaves which we harvested to feed the luna caterpillars. If you look closely at the photograph you can see one of the little stinkers crawling out of his shell.
These eggs were laid 5 days ago. The nymphs will spend the first few days on the egg cluster and then disperse. In the next five weeks, they will go through 5 growth stages (instars) gradually taking on the now-familiar adult form and coloration. There is apparently one generation each year in our area, so the little ones hatching now will be the adults that will live with us this winter. Fruit growers are concerned about the potential for extensive damage this year as the young and adults feed on apples and peaches, as well as other crops.
Thanks, John, for finding such noteworthy sweetgum for the lunas.
