Spotted Lanterflies making a reappearance across the Commonwealth

(WSET) — You'll need to keep your eyes out for another pest soon. It's about time for spotted lanternflies to reappear in our area.

Dr. Theresa Dellinger with the Virginia Tech Insect Identification Lab said it doesn't seem like they're going away any time soon. In fact, we're going to see them popping up again over the next couple of weeks.

They've spent the winter in their egg sacs, and now that it's warming up, they're going to hatch and start to re-appear.

Those eggs will hatch into nyphs. We probably won't see a whole lot of them at first, because they tend to be pretty small. They'll be black and white, and blend in with vegetation," Dr. Dellinger said. "Later on they'll become larger and more noticeable, in size and coloration.

However, Dr. Dellinger said not to worry, they're mostly a nuisance.

They might come in on your shoulder, but they're not going to infest your house, or your house wood, or food in your house, nothing like that," she said.

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Dr. Dellinger said you can get rid of them by stomping on them, hitting them with a fly swatter, or even using insecticide.

She also said it's important to check your cars for egg masses before doing any traveling, especially if you're in Lynchburg, where they're very common.

Dr.Dellinger said spotted lanternflies can be found in multiple areas across Virginia, but she expects they'll continue to spread.

"Eventually the environment will kind of adapt to their presence, and as people, we do too," she said.