A species of moth not seen since 1912 was rediscovered final 12 months at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Customs and Border Safety introduced this week. The "very flashy" moths had been discovered within the baggage of a traveler arriving from the Philippines, authorities mentioned.
The encounter started in September 2021, when agriculture specialists examined the passenger's bag and located seeds that he mentioned had been for a medicinal tea, CBP mentioned in a press release. Trying nearer, the specialists discovered "obvious insect exit holes," and larvae and pupae — moths within the early stage of their improvement — had been gathered for evaluation.
Whereas in quarantine, a number of of the pupae hatched to disclose "very flashy" moths with raised black bristles, CBP mentioned. Officers could not establish the moths' species, so that they had been despatched to the U.S. Division of Agriculture, the place an professional confirmed that they belonged to a species that had not been seen for the reason that animals had been first described in 1912.
"Agriculture specialists play a significant function at our nation's ports of entry by stopping the introduction of dangerous unique plant pests and international animal illnesses into america," Port Director Robert Larkin mentioned within the assertion. "This discovery is a testomony to their essential mission of figuring out international pests and defending America's pure sources."