Japanese beetle swarms Valle d'Aosta orchards as pest moves deeper into Alps

The iridescent green beetles native to Japan have become a growing menace in the Valle d'Aosta, swarming through orchards and vineyards and leaving behind devastating lattice patterns in leaves that weaken the plants and reduce production, according to AP News. The Popillia japonica, or Japanese beetle, is a familiar pest in the United States, where it arrived more than a century ago, but it is a relative newcomer to Italy and represents an escalating threat to the region's agricultural economy at a moment when the Alps face compounding pressures from climate stress.

The beetles have been documented in Pont-Saint-Martin and other Valle d'Aosta communes, according to AP reporting from mid-July. Vittorio Costabloz, vice-president of the regional agricultural association, expressed frustration over the advance of the pest northward through Italian vineyards and orchards. The beetle's arrival marks a new front in the region's struggle to maintain agricultural productivity as heat, drought, and now invasive species converge on the small mountain economy that depends on viticulture, dairy, and fruit cultivation.