On January 10, the Department of Agriculture announced the winners of the student Spotted Lanternfly calendar contest at the 2020 Pennsylvania Farm Show. The PDA holds this contest annually as an effort to continue to raise awareness about the threat of the Spotted Lanternfly.

“When an invasive species enters Pennsylvania, we need the help of our communities to eradicate it,” said Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding.” This contest educates students about the threat posed by this invasive insect, help Pennsylvanians better identify it, encourage discussions amongst students and their families, and provide awareness and engagement across the state. I commend the student’s hard work and dedication.”

Selected from more than 1,431 submissions, a drawing of the Spotted Lanternfly created by Annabelle Hoover, a 7th grader at Mechanicsburg Middle School in Cumberland County, has been honored as the Overall Winner. Her drawing will be featured as the cover of the 2020 Spotted Lanternfly Calendar. Hoover’s school will win a Spring assembly featuring prizes, activities, and a special guest.

Entries came from 87 schools/groups and 32 homeschoolers.

Winners were chosen based on creativity, ability to effectively communicate the theme, and the ability to follow the contest rules.

Winners for each corresponding month, grades, schools, counties, placings, and categories:

-- 1st & 2nd Grades

(January) – Isabella Luetke, Worchester Elementary, 2nd Grade, Montgomery County

(May) – Lily Cornish, Worchester Elementary, 2nd Grade, Montgomery county

(September) – Elizabeth Pumford, Homeschooler, 2nd Grade, Indiana County

-- 3rd & 4th Grades

(February) – Kaitlyn Singer, Sugartown Elementary, 4th Grade, Chester County

(June) – Collective Class, Seven Generations Charter School, 4th Grade, Lehigh County

(October) – Akshita Saraswat, Sugartown Elementary, 4th Grade, Chester County

-- 5th & 6th Grades

(March) – Mithila Bristi, Samuel K. Faust Elementary, 6th Grade, Bucks County

(July) – Blake Lee, The Haverford School, 6th Grade, Delaware County

(November) – Erica Stauffer, Sunbury Christian Academy, 6th Grade, Northumberland County

-- 7th & 8th Grades

(April) – Annabelle Hoover, Mechanicsburg Middle School, 7th Grade, Cumberland County

(August) – Ada Stapleton, Huntingdon Area Middle School, 8th Grade, Huntingdon County

(December) – Kaya Maciejewski, Pleasant Valley Ecology Club, 8th Grade, Monroe County

Click Here for photos of winners.

The contest was open to students across the Commonwealth in grades 1-8. Contestants entered by sending their entries to the Department of Agriculture.

Entries should have included one fact about the Spotted Lanternfly, an original 11” x 17” horizontal poster created by the student, and a complete contest submission rule taped to the back of the poster.

Judges for the contest were from the Department of Agriculture, and knowledgeable on the Spotted Lanternfly. Finalists will have their entries printed in the 2020 calendar, produced by the PDA.

The Spotted Lanternfly is an inch-long, black, red, and, white spotted insect native to Southeast Asia and first identified in Pennsylvania in 2014. The invasive insect feeds on agricultural goods produced in the state, such as apples, grapes, hops, and hardwoods.

Find out more, visit the Department of Agriculture’s Spotted Lanternfly webpage, the Penn State Extension Spotted Lanternfly webpage and the U.S.D.A. Spotted Lanternfly webpage.

(Photo: Agriculture Deputy Secretary Fred Strathmeyer and Annabelle Hoover, Cumberland County, first place winner.)

NewsClips:

300+ PA Environment & Energy NewsClips Are Waiting To Be Read

Related Articles:

Potential Economic Damage Due To Spotted Lanternfly In PA Could Reach $324 Million Annually, Now Stands At $50.1 Million

Controlled Plant & Noxious Weed Committee Meets Jan. 23 To Consider 6 Additions To Noxious Weed List

PA Horticultural Society Gardening For Biodiversity Symposium March 4 In Philadelphia

Manada Conservancy's Online Native Plant Pre-Sale Now Open In Dauphin County

For First Time, The Top 5 Risks In The World Economic Forum's Global Risks Report Are All Environmental

[Posted: January 13, 2020]

1/20/2020