Probably Another Sham  
 
There have been about a half dozen previous picture attempts to prove that the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) does damage in California. Each previous picture was fraudulent, a set up. The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) showed the pictures to the public. When documentation was requested (date, place, circumstances, etc) CDFA did not produce the pictures again or the information. They appeared to be staged pictures and two superior courts had findings of "No damage," end of that story.  
 
Again we have new pictures for those in the public who are not aware of previous deception and proven falsehoods delivered by the CDFA and their associates. CDFA wants to show damage so they can continue to grab about $100 million per year of the public's emergency funds that are truly needed for real emergencies in this desperate economy.  
 
Read closely and note the article says "QUITE LIKELY light brown apple moth."  
That is false. Almost certainly they are Orange Tortrix moths that are native and not a serious pest, easily treated and with NO Eradication Program.  
 
Conclusive proof will require hatching of the larva and a DNA test. If this were a legitimate possibility, the testing would have already been done, instead of trying to make the false impression with the story title and pictures.  
 
If this was even a legitimate possibility, then why isn't the general location of this "Find" stated. Why isn't it identified as an organic or conventional field of berries? If conventional, why isn't it identified if the field was treated with Methyl Bromide and when? Is this a field where the CDFA forced the grower to buy and spray one of the severely toxic pesticides that kills the predators of LBAM and Orange Tortrix and many other easily managed insects so long as the toxic pesticides are not used? Is this a field that poisoning forced by CDFA has caused imbalances that only such extreme, hysterical, dangerous and unreasonable farming methods forced by CDFA could induce?  
 
Mr. Kawamura, the director of the CDFA, should resign right now. So should Steve Lyle, his talking head PR puppet and John Connell, the one who delivers Frankenstein Science and direct lies across the state.  
 
Some of their most obvious lies:  
1. LBAM has caused serious damage in California (Truth - courts said "No").  
2. LBAM was found in California in 2007 (Truth - it was found prior to that).  
3. Aerial spray for LBAM Eradication is Not Toxic (Truth - private lab tests and three state agencies confirmed it is toxic).  
4. CDFA only uses EPA Registered Pesticides (Truth - Checkmate was not EPA registered).  
 
If you leave honey and donuts on your kitchen counter with an open door and a trail of it out to your back yard, I suppose pictures of what the ants will do to your kitchen could look pretty imposing too. So then would we need to eradicate ants?  
 
LBAM is an insect that is easily controlled everywhere it lives on this earth. That is the truth. CDFA will do everything in their power to promote an LBAM eradication program, not because it is more dangerous than other insects we live with, but because Mr. Kawamura wants the big money for his agency and it is likely that the money is already committed to those political insiders who will provide the unnecessary pesticides within state contracts to "Fight" LBAM.

Off Topic, but what kind of trap would you suggest using to monitor fruit flies in raspberry tunnels?

Not off topic, since many previous posts have been about the cherry vinegar fly (the "fruit fly" in raspberry). The trap that we have been using is a dilution of GF 120 Fruit Fly bait (about 5 parts water to one part bait) in a wide mouth jar with little less than dime size holes punched into the top. Be sure to mark the jar as not fit for food use!  
Jar is hung from a wire or stake in the raspberry hedgerow, check it after about a day. Most flies will get stuck in the liquid and be trapped there.  
While the GF 120 Bait is easy to work with because it stays in solution for a while and doesn't spoil easily, you can also use apple juice or banana slices. These have worked well for me, but again, are harder to service because they have to be replaced so often.  
Thanks for the question.

In reference to the "sham" letter:  
The pictures in this post were taken by the USDA, but I was there in the field at the same time. There was a lot of damage, and a high percentage of larvae taken from the field were tested positive for LBAM. However, the larva in the picture was not tested, hence the "quite likely" caption.  
The number of LBAM being found in berry crops this year is much higher than last year. The purpose of this post is to emphasize to berry growers how important it is to address leafroller problems in light of the increased presence of a regulated pest, as well as demonstrate in pictures leafroller damage, be it from LBAM or orange tortryx.