it may sound too good to be true, but in 2009, entomologists in Georgia noticed large numbers of an unidentified insect in and around kudzu infestations. The following year it was found in adjoining states. The insect is the bean plataspid (Megacoptacribraria) or more simply the "kudzu bug." A native of India and China, it feeds primarily on legumes such as kudzu, soybeans and wisteria. Known as "the vine that ate the South," kudzu was introduced from Japan more than 100 years ago for soil stabilization and erosion control on strip mines and road banks. It adapted quickly, sometimes growing inches a day and covering entire trees as well as abandoned houses and barns. It is expensive to control and in many locations continues to spread. Now there are hopes that the kudzu bug may be an effective control.
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