Lovable dogs fight against a new invasive pest

Que, a 10-year-old Australian shepherd, sits patiently outside a shelter at a West Lafayette park eyeing Kallie Bontrager. Bontrager is holding a treat in one hand and a scented plastic tube in the other. When Que sniffs the tube, Bontrager gives him a treat. Sniff. Treat. Sniff. Treat. It's a typical training tactic, but this isn't your typical dog training.

Que is learning how to help stop the spread of an invasive pest that is a growing threat to Indiana — the spotted lanternfly. Indiana is an emerging battlefront against the invasive plant hopper, which can devastate vineyards and harm other native plants and trees.

Que and his brother, Epic, 5, are participants in an innovative new approach to eradicating the pest first found in Indiana in 2021.

Bontrager is a nursery inspector with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. She spends her days traveling to big-box garden centers and small nurseries to make sure there are no invasive insects or diseases on plants being sold to customers.

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Editor's note: This story was originally published in the IndyStar.