Official Pest Report
Official Pest Reports are provided by National Plant Protection Organizations within the NAPPO region. These Pest Reports are intended to comply with the International Plant Protection Convention's Standard on Pest Reporting, endorsed by the Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures in March 2002.
Retraction of identification of Silver Y Moth, Autographa gamma, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Retraction of identification of Silver Y Moth, Autographa gamma, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Country: United States
Title: Retraction of identification of Silver Y Moth, Autographa gamma, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Contact:
Brian Kopper, Eastern Regional Program Manager, at (919) 855-7318 or Valerie DeFeo, National Program Manager, at (301) 734-3393
Report:
On July 30, 2010, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) reported the detection of one Autographa gamma, Silver Y Moth, from a grape vineyard in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. After several weeks of intensive surveys in the surrounding area and in other states with no additional detections of Silver Y moth, APHIS requested USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, Systematic Entomology Laboratory (SEL) re-examine the specimen. Through further observation of the dissected male, SEL determined that this identification was actually a native moth, Autographa californica, known to be present in the western United States, and out of its normal range. Autographa gamma is still not known to occur in the United States, and APHIS is therefore retracting the SPRO letter issued on September 13, 2010 announcing the detection.
Under IPPC Standards, Autographa gamma is considered to be a pest that is absent from the United States.
Posted Date: Oct. 1, 2010, 9 a.m.