{"license":"Text © Pollinate Happiness, free for educational use with attribution. Species ranges generalized from USDA PLANTS/BONAP; life-stage months typical for the Northeast.","items":{"spotted-lanternfly":{"taxonId":324726,"stages":[{"key":"egg","label":"Egg masses","months":[9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4,5,6],"peak":[12,1,2,3,4],"term":1,"value":7,"look":"Gray-brown, putty-like smears 1 to 1.5 inches long holding 30 to 50 eggs, on tree bark, stone, fences, cars, grills, and patio furniture. Laid from September until a hard freeze; they hatch from late April into June. Older masses crack and look like dried mud.","action":"Scrape into a bag of rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer and seal. Check vehicles and firewood before traveling."},{"key":"nymph-early","label":"Early nymphs","months":[4,5,6,7],"peak":[5,6],"term":1,"value":5,"look":"Black, a quarter inch long, covered in white polka dots. They hop when approached and cluster on tree-of-heaven, grapevines, black walnut, roses, and garden vegetables.","action":"Squash them. Wrap trunks with sticky bands only inside a wildlife guard, or use circle traps. Removing tree-of-heaven helps as one part of the plan."},{"key":"nymph-late","label":"Red nymphs","months":[7,8,9],"peak":[7],"term":1,"value":5,"look":"Bright red with black and white spots, about half an inch. The last stage before adults, often in groups on stems. Most common in July and August; a few hang on into September.","action":"Squash. Circle traps on trunks catch large numbers now."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adults","months":[7,8,9,10,11,12],"peak":[8,9,10,11],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"An inch long with gray, black-spotted forewings; the red, black, and white hindwings flash in flight. The first ones show up in July, and they stay active until a hard freeze. Swarms on tree-of-heaven, maples, and grapevines, with sticky honeydew and black sooty mold below.","action":"Squash. Egg-laying starts in September, so kill adults early. Report in towns where they are not yet known."}]},"spongy-moth":{"taxonId":47802,"stages":[{"key":"egg","label":"Egg masses","months":[8,9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4],"term":1,"value":7,"look":"Tan, felt-like oval masses about 1.5 inches long on bark, under limbs, on firewood, sheds, and outdoor gear.","action":"Scrape into soapy water. Each mass holds 500 to 1,000 caterpillars."},{"key":"larva","label":"Caterpillars","months":[5,6],"term":1,"value":6,"look":"Hairy caterpillars up to 2.5 inches with five pairs of blue dots followed by six pairs of red dots. In early May, tiny black caterpillars balloon on silk threads.","action":"Wrap trunks with burlap bands folded over; collect the caterpillars hiding under them at midday into soapy water."},{"key":"pupa","label":"Pupae","months":[6,7],"term":1,"value":4,"look":"Dark brown teardrop cases hanging by a few silk threads in bark crevices and under eaves.","action":"Crush them."},{"key":"adult","label":"Moths","months":[7,8],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Cream-white flightless females laying eggs on trunks; brown males fluttering in zigzags by day.","action":"Nothing effective now. Note infested trees for egg-mass scraping this winter."}]},"emerald-ash-borer":{"taxonId":70057,"stages":[{"key":"larva","label":"Larvae under bark","months":[8,9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4,5],"term":1,"value":6,"look":"Cream-colored, flat, segmented larvae in S-shaped galleries under ash bark. From outside: thinning crown, sprouts from the trunk, bark splits, and pale flecking where woodpeckers have been feeding.","action":"Have valuable ash trees treated by a certified arborist in spring. Never move firewood."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adult beetles","months":[6,7],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Metallic emerald beetles half an inch long on ash foliage; fresh D-shaped exit holes an eighth of an inch across in the bark.","action":"Report new finds. Trunk treatments must be in place before or during flight."}]},"asian-longhorned-beetle":{"taxonId":128525,"stages":[{"key":"larva","label":"Larvae inside trunks","months":[9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4,5,6],"term":1,"value":6,"look":"Hidden inside maples, birches, elms, and willows. Look for coarse sawdust-like frass piled at the base of trunks and in branch crotches, and oozing sap from oval egg sites.","action":"Report suspicious frass or dime-sized perfectly round holes to the state or USDA."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adult beetles","months":[7,8,9,10],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Glossy black, 1 to 1.5 inches, with white spots and antennae longer than the body banded black and white.","action":"Capture in a jar, photograph, and report immediately. Parts of Nassau and Suffolk are still under federal quarantine as of 2026."}]},"hemlock-woolly-adelgid":{"taxonId":61513,"stages":[{"key":"wool","label":"White wool visible","months":[11,12,1,2,3,4,5],"look":"White cottony tufts at the base of needles on the underside of hemlock twigs, like tiny cotton swabs. Most visible late winter and spring.","action":"Check every hemlock now. Arborist treatments work best in spring and fall."},{"key":"summer","label":"Hard to see","months":[6,7,8,9,10],"look":"Tiny nymphs settle on the new growth and rest through the summer heat while the old wool weathers away, so infested trees look clean. As it cools, often in September or October, they wake up and start feeding, and fresh wool builds through late fall. Thinning, grayish foliage is the main clue until then.","action":"Note suspect trees and schedule a fall treatment."}]},"jumping-worms":{"taxonId":364093,"stages":[{"key":"cocoon","label":"Cocoons in soil","months":[11,12,1,2,3,4],"look":"Adults have died; mustard-seed-sized cocoons in the top inch of soil are invisible in practice. Infested soil looks like coffee grounds with no leaf litter.","action":"Do not move soil, mulch, or plants out of infested beds. Solarize compost under clear plastic."},{"key":"juvenile","label":"Small worms","months":[5,6,7],"term":1,"value":8,"look":"Small, pale, fast-moving worms that thrash when disturbed. The pale band has not formed yet.","action":"Hand-remove into a sealed bag."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adults","months":[8,9,10],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"4 to 8 inches, smooth and gray-brown, thrashing like a snake when touched, with a milky-white flat band circling the body near the head.","action":"Hand-remove into a bag and dispose in the trash. Report to iMapInvasives."}]},"japanese-beetle":{"taxonId":67760,"stages":[{"key":"grub","label":"Grubs in lawn","months":[9,10,11,12,1,2,3,4,5],"term":1,"value":6,"look":"C-shaped white grubs with brown heads in the root zone of turf. Brown lawn patches that lift like carpet; skunks and raccoons digging.","action":"Beneficial nematodes in late August or September; replacing lawn with native plantings removes the habitat."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adult beetles","months":[6,7,8],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Half an inch, metallic green with copper wing covers and tufts of white hair along the sides. Feed in groups, skeletonizing leaves.","action":"Knock into soapy water in the morning. Skip pheromone traps; they draw more beetles than they catch."}]},"brown-marmorated-stink-bug":{"taxonId":81923,"stages":[{"key":"egg","label":"Eggs","months":[6,7],"term":1,"value":7,"look":"Clusters of 20 to 30 pale green, barrel-shaped eggs on leaf undersides.","action":"Crush or drop the leaf in soapy water."},{"key":"nymph","label":"Nymphs","months":[6,7,8,9],"term":1,"value":5,"look":"Early nymphs are red and black; later ones brown with banded legs and antennae, on fruit and vegetables.","action":"Hand-pick into soapy water."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adults","months":[3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11],"peak":[3,4,5,10,11],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Mottled brown shield half to three quarters of an inch with alternating light and dark bands on the antennae and abdomen edge. Adults that spent the winter indoors come out from early spring to mid-June to feed and lay eggs, a new generation of adults feeds on fruit and vegetables through summer, and in fall they swarm sunny walls and slip indoors.","action":"In the garden, hand-pick into soapy water. In fall, seal gaps around windows and vents; vacuum indoor bugs."}]},"garlic-mustard":{"taxonId":56061,"stages":[{"key":"rosette","label":"Rosettes","months":[8,9,10,11,12,1,2,3],"look":"Low rosettes of kidney-shaped, scalloped leaves that smell of garlic when crushed. They stay green all winter, which makes them easy to spot.","action":"Pull them now while nothing else is green, or flag the patch for April."},{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[4,5],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Stalks 1 to 3 feet tall with triangular, toothed leaves and clusters of small white four-petaled flowers.","action":"Pull before seed sets. The whole root comes up in moist soil. Bag and trash."},{"key":"seeding","label":"Seed pods","months":[6,7],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Long, thin, upright pods turning brown on yellowing plants; each plant holds hundreds of seeds.","action":"Cut and bag pods. Never compost. Seed lasts years in soil, so repeat for five seasons."}]},"mile-a-minute":{"taxonId":131249,"stages":[{"key":"seedling","label":"Seedlings","months":[4,5],"look":"Small seedlings with perfectly triangular light-green leaves and reddish stems, often in dense flushes where last year's vines grew.","action":"Pull now; roots are shallow and there are no barbs yet."},{"key":"vine","label":"Climbing vines","months":[6,7,8],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Vines growing up to 6 inches a day over shrubs and small trees, with triangular leaves, recurved barbs, and saucer-shaped leafy cups at the nodes.","action":"Pull with gloves before berries form; get the root."},{"key":"fruit","label":"Blue berries","months":[8,9,10],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Clusters of metallic blue berries sitting in the leafy cups.","action":"Bag every berry before birds spread them. Report new populations."}]},"black-swallow-wort":{"taxonId":208963,"stages":[{"key":"shoots","label":"New shoots","months":[5],"look":"Twining shoots with glossy, opposite, pointed leaves emerging in meadows, hedgerows, and garden beds.","action":"Dig root crowns while the ground is soft."},{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[6,7],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Tiny dark purple to black star-shaped flowers along the vine. Monarchs lay eggs on it now; the caterpillars die.","action":"Pull or dig; do not just cut."},{"key":"pods","label":"Seed pods","months":[8,9],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Slender pointed pods like small milkweed pods, splitting to release silky seed.","action":"Bag pods before they open. Report it near monarch habitat."}]},"japanese-knotweed":{"taxonId":914922,"stages":[{"key":"shoots","label":"Spring shoots","months":[4,5],"look":"Red-purple shoots like thick asparagus spears pushing up in clumps, growing several inches a day.","action":"Cut repeatedly to exhaust the rhizome; never dig without a disposal plan."},{"key":"summer","label":"Summer canes","months":[6,7],"look":"Hollow, bamboo-like canes 6 to 10 feet tall with red speckles, zig-zag branching, and heart-shaped leaves with a flat base.","action":"Keep cutting; bag every fragment."},{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[8,9],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Sprays of tiny creamy-white flowers, buzzing with bees.","action":"Late-season treatment is most effective now, before the plant pulls energy down for winter."},{"key":"dormant","label":"Dead canes","months":[10,11,12,1,2,3],"look":"Standing dead tan canes, hollow and brittle; the rhizomes underneath are very much alive.","action":"Do not move soil from the area."}]},"tree-of-heaven":{"taxonId":57278,"stages":[{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[6,7],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Large clusters of yellow-green flowers at branch tips with a strong, unpleasant smell.","action":"Mark trees now; flowers make them easy to spot from a distance."},{"key":"samaras","label":"Seed clusters","months":[8,9,10,11],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Big drooping clusters of twisted, papery, tan-to-red samaras on female trees, persisting into winter.","action":"Until the leaves turn, treat the standing tree so herbicide reaches the roots, then cut about a month later. Cutting first, even with stump treatment, triggers suckers."},{"key":"winter","label":"Bare trees","months":[12,1,2,3,4,5],"look":"Smooth gray bark, very stout twigs with large heart-shaped leaf scars, and root suckers everywhere. Check trunks for spotted lanternfly egg masses.","action":"Scrape lanternfly eggs; plan treatment for July through early fall, before cutting."}]},"purple-loosestrife":{"taxonId":61321,"stages":[{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[7,8],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Tall spikes of magenta flowers on square stems in wet ground.","action":"Cut and bag flower spikes before seed sets; pull small plants."},{"key":"seeding","label":"Seed spikes","months":[9,10],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Brown spikes shedding dust-fine seed, up to two million per plant.","action":"Cut carefully into bags; do not shake."},{"key":"dormant","label":"Dormant","months":[11,12,1,2,3,4,5,6],"look":"Dead brown stems standing in marsh edges; new red-tinged shoots in May.","action":"Flag patches for July."}]},"oriental-bittersweet":{"taxonId":64540,"stages":[{"key":"summer","label":"Leafy vines","months":[5,6,7,8],"look":"Twining vines with round, glossy, finely toothed leaves climbing shrubs and trees; small greenish flowers in June.","action":"Cut vines at chest and ankle height and treat the lower stump."},{"key":"fruit","label":"Orange berries","months":[9,10,11,12],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Yellow-orange capsules along the stems splitting to show red seeds, unmistakable after leaf drop.","action":"Cut before birds eat the fruit. Never use in wreaths or arrangements."},{"key":"winter","label":"Bare vines","months":[1,2,3,4],"look":"Thick, striated vines spiraling up trunks and girdling them; remaining berries on the ground.","action":"Winter is the easiest time to find and cut the big vines."}]},"lesser-celandine":{"taxonId":204321,"stages":[{"key":"flowering","label":"Flowering","months":[3,4],"term":12,"value":13,"look":"Mats of glossy, heart-shaped leaves with bright yellow, eight-petaled flowers in floodplains, lawns, and shady beds.","action":"Dig small patches with all soil into bags before the bulbils drop; report larger ones."},{"key":"fading","label":"Dying back","months":[5],"look":"Yellowing leaves and tiny tubers and bulbils dropping into the soil.","action":"Do not rake or move soil from the patch."},{"key":"dormant","label":"Gone","months":[6,7,8,9,10,11,12,1,2],"look":"Nothing visible at all; bare soil where native spring wildflowers should be.","action":"Mark the spot for March."}]},"japanese-stiltgrass":{"taxonId":116710,"stages":[{"key":"seedling","label":"Seedlings","months":[5,6],"look":"Delicate pale green seedlings with a silvery stripe of hairs down the leaf midrib, in shady lawns, trails, and woodland edges.","action":"Pull small patches now; the roots are shallow."},{"key":"vegetative","label":"Sprawling growth","months":[7,8],"look":"Sprawling stems 1 to 3 feet, rooting at the nodes, forming lawn-like carpets in shade.","action":"Pull or string-trim close to the ground in late August, before seed."},{"key":"seeding","label":"Seed heads","months":[9,10],"term":12,"value":14,"look":"Thin seed spikes at the stem tips; plants turn purple, then tan, and die at first frost.","action":"Too late to prevent seed once heads show. Bag what you pull; plan for August next year."}]},"monarch":{"taxonId":48662,"stages":[{"key":"egg","label":"Eggs","months":[6,7,8],"term":1,"value":7,"look":"Single cream-colored, ribbed eggs the size of a pinhead on the underside of milkweed leaves, usually the tender top leaves.","action":"Look, don't touch. Leave aphids and don't spray."},{"key":"larva","label":"Caterpillars","months":[6,7,8,9],"term":1,"value":6,"look":"Yellow, black, and white banded caterpillars up to 2 inches with two pairs of black filaments. Chewed leaves and dark frass on the leaf below give them away.","action":"Plant more milkweed if they run out; do not move them indoors unless you know how to raise them cleanly."},{"key":"pupa","label":"Chrysalises","months":[7,8,9],"term":1,"value":4,"look":"Jade-green chrysalis with a line of gold dots, hanging from a silk pad under leaves, fence rails, and eaves near milkweed.","action":"Leave it. It darkens and shows the wings the day before emergence."},{"key":"adult","label":"Adults","months":[6,7,8,9,10],"term":1,"value":2,"look":"Orange with black veins and white-spotted black borders. In September and October, migrants stream south along shorelines and cluster in trees at dusk.","action":"Fuel them with goldenrod, asters, and Joe Pye weed. Report to Journey North."}]}}}