British Columbians are being asked to be on the look out for a destructive agricultural pest called the brown marmorated stink bug, after one of the beetles was recently found in Penticton, B.C.
The insect was discovered in an area close to the Penticton channel, said B.C. Fruit Growers' Association (BCFGA) field services manager Hank Markgraft in an interview.
The brown marmorated stink bug is an invasive pest that attacks tree fruits, berries, grapes, vegetables, corn and ornamental plants.
"It's a piercing-sucking insect," said Markgraft.
"It likes to sit on top of grapes or apples or cherries, pierce into the body of the fruit and suck out some juice. That makes a nasty welt on the fruit, making it unmarketable."
The stink bug is a native pest of Asia and was first identified in North America in Pennsylvania in 2001, according to the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture.
The species spread through the mid-Atlantic states and is established in California, Oregon and Washington.
In 2010, the species caused $37 million dollars in damage to the mid-Atlantic U.S. apple industry.
In 2012, a stink bug was discovered in Hamilton, Ont. and the pest has since spread to several municipalities across the province and to Prince Edward Island.
That same year, the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture put out a warning about the species, asking people not to bring fruits or vegetables into the province from the U.S. or other provinces.
Source : CBC