DEM Teaches Residents to Destroy Lanternfly Eggs

Rhode Island's environmental agency held a Warwick workshop on identifying and scraping off spotted lanternfly egg masses before they hatch.

Updated on Nov. 15, 2026 in Landscaping

DEM Teaches Residents to Destroy Lanternfly Eggs

Live Poll

Would you scrape spotted lanternfly egg masses off trees in your yard?

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management held a workshop at Salter Grove Memorial Park in Warwick teaching participants to identify and destroy spotted lanternfly egg masses. The insect's population has expanded rapidly across Rhode Island since 2021.

Why it matters

Spotted lanternflies pose a threat to vineyards, orchards and other agricultural crops, and residents who remove egg masses can reduce how many insects emerge the following year. The workshop aimed to give residents skills they can use in their own yards and community spaces.

A single female spotted lanternfly can lay up to 35 eggs in one mass, according to workshop guidance from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Destroying one mass can prevent dozens of nymphs from hatching the following year, though the number of masses removed statewide remains unknown.

The players

Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management

The state agency responsible for environmental protection and natural resource management in Rhode Island, which organized the workshop and provided the removal guidance.

The details

Participants learned to scrape egg masses off trees and crush or otherwise destroy them, since knocking them to the ground is not sufficient. Cold weather makes remaining adult lanternflies less active and easier to kill.

Since 2021: The spotted lanternfly population began expanding rapidly across Rhode Island.
November 15, 2026: The Department of Environmental Management held the workshop at Salter Grove Memorial Park in Warwick.
Spring 2027: Surviving spotted lanternfly eggs are expected to hatch.

Seasonal Patterns

Rhode Island's lanternfly expansion since 2021 follows the same regional pattern of rapid spread first documented in Pennsylvania after the insect was detected in Berks County in 2014. Residents removing egg masses now are working to slow a trend that has moved steadily northeast from its origin.

Scrape spotted lanternfly egg masses off trees and crush or destroy them rather than dropping them to the ground. Removing masses now can prevent dozens of nymphs from hatching next spring.

The takeaway

Checking trees and outdoor structures for lanternfly egg masses during colder months is a simple step that can reduce the insect's spread in your yard and community. Destroying each mass removes dozens of potential future insects before spring.