A pest which has the potential to cause major damage to the horticulture sector has been found again in New Zealand.
The pest has the potential to devastate the fruit, vegetable and wine industries, and could put a multi-billion dollar hole in our economy.
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A solo brown marmorated stink bug was found in Mount Maunganui in December, while a single bug was also found in Auckland.
Twenty-six of the bugs were discovered in a box of imported shoes, bought by an eBay customer in Oamaru in December.
In the latest cases, a single male brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) was found inside a Mount Maunganui house in mid-December, 2018.
Horticulture New Zealand said the area where it was found has been inspected and traps were set prior to Christmas.
The traps have been checked over the holiday period and no further BMSB have been found in the area.
In an unrelated incident, a single bug was found in Glenfield, Auckland in early January.
It’s not known where the stink bug came from and Biosecurity New Zealand inquiries are continuing to try to determine a pathway.
The area has been inspected and traps are being set to determine whether this was a single hitchhiker.
Horticulture New Zealand said to date there is no evidence of an established BMSB population.
Newshub.
