By James Lanaras
April 24, 2008
A second light brown apple moth was found this week within 3 miles of another moth that was found near Arnold Drive on the outskirts of Sonoma in February, the Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office said this morning.
The discovery of the second moth in a trap Monday triggered quarantines in Sonoma County, restricting the movement of fruits, vegetables, and plants from the area, agricultural officials said.
Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner Lisa Correia said the California Department of Food and Agriculture will likely place pheromone-infused twist ties in a 200-meter area around where the two moths were detected by ground crews. That treatment is the preferred method for small, isolated infestations, she said.
Aerial spraying is not planned and the twist-ties treatment has been used effectively in other counties. Residents of the area will be informed in advance of the treatment that is not expected to begin until June at the earliest, Correia said.
The pheromone is odorless and colorless and prevents male moths from mating with females. Correia said additional traps are being set in the Sonoma area.
The state Department of Food and Agriculture has drawn criticism for its plans to begin aerial spraying a pesticide to eradicate the moth this summer in the Bay Area. Ten counties in California, from Sonoma to Monterey, are now under regulatory action that includes quarantine or eradication plans. Small isolated infestations were found and eradicated last year in Napa and Los Angeles counties.
The light brown apple moth is native to Australia and hundreds of plant species are susceptible to attack by it, including 250 crops, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
The moth stunts or destroys young seedlings, spoils the appearance of ornamental plants and injures grapes, citrus and deciduous fruit tree crops.
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