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 FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - Sightings of the light brown apple moth — which can ruin everything from tomatoes to citrus fruit to alfalfa — have shot up into the thousands since the insect was first discovered in the San Francisco Bay area three months ago, agriculture officials said Friday.
The half-inch moth with an indiscriminate appetite has prompted a federal quarantine, brought together scientists from around the world and worried farmers in California, where agriculture brings in more than $30 billion in revenue a year.
Many fear the pesky little moth's habits: chomping on the leaves of more than 250 plants species and ruining crops from the inside out by burrowing when it's in caterpillar form.
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