The two-lined spittlebug arrived on Hawaii island in 2016.

The tiny black bug is about one centimeter long with two blood-orange stripes across its body and red legs. It’s a leaf hopper that feeds on grass through its entire life cycle, which is typically around 60 days.

Now, 10 years later, it has destroyed an estimated 320,000 acres of ranchlands from Pu‘u Wa‘awa‘a to South Point.

“It has grown tremendously,” said Mark Thorne, a range and livestock extension specialist with the University of
Hawaii.

Thorne has led research on the pest’s impact on the island since its arrival. He said if nothing is done and the pest moves north into Waimea, where the state’s largest livestock production resides, “we stand to potentially lose our best cattle production ranchlands and that entire industry.”

The threat to the cattle industry prompted Sen. Mike Gabbard, D Kapolei-Makakilo-­Kalaeloa, to introduce SB 2321, which would create a two-year response pilot program within the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity to address the spittlebug on the Big Island. The bill passed its first reading on Jan. 21 and was referred to the Agriculture and Environment and Ways and Means committees on Jan. 26.

“This bill is really about getting ahead of the problem,” Gabbard said in an email. “Not just reacting once the damage is already done.”

As of 2023, the bill said, the state’s livestock industry had a production value of more than $50 million with more than 143,000 beef cattle. Most of that cattle is raised on Hawaii island
and 70% of them feed on sod-farming grasses, such as kikuyo and pangola, which the spittlebug targets.

The bug is native to the southeast United States, said Nicole Galase, managing director for Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council. She said she helped lobby for the bill, which aims to help ranchers who are “shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to battle this bug on their own” stay in business while ensuring best practices are taking place to prevent the infestation from spreading.

“It’s not something that just ranchers alone can combat,” she said. “The fact is the ranchers are on the front line of having to deal with it, but eventually we are worried that it could be affecting any area with grass cover.”

When the spittlebug kills pasture grass, it clears the way for invasive grasses and weeds to move in, Thorne said. Those invasive grasses and weeds are incredibly
difficult for ranchers to
remove.

“It basically renders the rangelands that our livestock industry rely on almost to the point of not being able to support livestock production,” Thorne said. “It’s pretty devastating.”

So far, the infestation has been able to stay concentrated in the south Kona area, Thorne said, but a new population was recently discovered in Glenwood likely due to inadvertent human transportation.

Thorne said a response team could help educate ranchers about the bug and its impact so that they can implement quick responses as soon as they notice a dead patch of grass or spittlebug masses in the soil.

The bug is difficult to spot because of its small size and proximity to the soil line for the majority of its life cycle. Eggs are laid in soil and when they hatch, tiny nymphs excrete white froth known as “spittle mass” that protect them from predators and drying out. Adults can be seen hopping around the pasture for the final three to four weeks of their life.

As of now, Thorne said the best way to contain the pest is to target them while they are in the nymph stage by cutting the grass short and spraying pesticide after finding a patch of dying grass. He also advised ranchers to ensure mud is cleaned from equipment, shoes and cars.

A mobile phone application was also created by Thorne’s team to help the public identify and report the pest. The app can be downloaded at tlsbhawaii.com.

Franny Brewer, program manager for the Big Island Invasive Species Committee, said a key infrastructure need that is sometimes overlooked is a way for ranchers to store grass seed. Ranchers have a limited time to reseed land after grass is destroyed, she said, and timing that with shipping seed from the mainland has been a challenge.

“There’s no secure facility that has the right environmental conditions on this island where there could be a place where seed is stored so we could buy bulk seed and have it ready to distribute to the ranchers,” she said. “Just even that infrastructure would be huge.”

Brewer supported the bill but emphasized the need for a clear plan from the
department.

She added that the bug will not only have negative effects on the cattle industry and Hawaii’s food security, but also can impact Hawaii’s watersheds through soil erosion.

“It’s really important for any invasive species to have a plan early, and have steps that you can implement,” she said. “If you don’t have
a plan and you’re just getting funding willy-nilly, is that going to contribute
long term to the success
of the response?”

Stacey Chun, an entomologist for the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity in Hilo, said the agency needs more funding to do more research on mitigation strategies on the pest.

“The cattle industry is a $50 million industry,” he said. “We need all the support we can get for it. There are jobs and lifestyles affected and we need to help keep the local economy
going.”

Gabbard said if passed, the pilot response team will target early infestations, map the big’s spread and test most effective and affordable ways to control it. It will also allow support and reimbursement for ranchers to ensure they “aren’t left to shoulder the cost alone,” Gabbard said.

The program would need an estimated
$1.6 million to operation — $800,000 for each year — Gabbard said. He noted that the coconut rhinoceros beetle, which has decimated Oahu’s palm trees, showed what happens when invasive species outpace a coordinated response: containment becomes more expensive and less effective.

Gabbard emphasized that every dollar spent now will save more money down the line as the state works to stop the spread of bug.

“If we wait until this pest spreads across more islands and more ranchlands,” Gabbard said, “the cost to the state — in emergency response, lost agricultural production and higher food prices — will be far greater than what it takes to fund this pilot program and do it right the first time.”

THERE’S a forgotten utopia among the 200+ Greek islands crying out for Brits to come and enjoy its untouched beaches, mouth-watering gyros and beers aplenty.

Karpathos may be the 15th largest Greek island but the population is only about 6,500, so it flies relatively under the radar — a paradise for off-grid explorers.

You’ll spot mainly Italian and Dutch tourists, although the majority of hotel and restaurant staff speak perfect English.

And they are thrilled to have us here, unlike some destinations where anti-tourist protests are in full force.

“We love the Brits, we want the Brits,” one restaurant owner told us.

Perhaps the reason it remains so off-grid is the long journey there.

WAIL OF A TIME

I drove Irish Route 66 with deserted golden beaches and pirate-like islands

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TEMPTED?

Tiny ‘Bali of Europe’ town with stunning beaches, €3 cocktails and £20 flights

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Although Karpathos has an airport, there are no direct flights from the UK, which leaves only two options: flying in via Athens, or jetting into Rhodes and taking a ferry.

We opted for the latter, hopping on a smooth easyJet flight from Gatwick for our first leg before whizzing over by boat.

If the journey sounds too hellish to do in one, you can break it up into stages.

It was my first time visiting Greece and I wanted to see some of Rhodes, so we stayed one night in the main hub before moving on to Karpathos.

Rhodes is undeniably beautiful and has lots to offer but in my short time there I couldn’t help noticing how samey it felt.

Tourist-trap shops, restaurants that want to get you in and out fast and a bit too heavy on the drunken booze scene.

Karpathos is relaxed and uncrowded — and we were grateful for it

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Karpathos, by comparison, is relaxed and uncrowded — and we were grateful for it.

The boat trip takes four hours with Blue Star Ferries, stopping at a couple of other islands on the way. But we didn’t mind soaking up the blue skies and seeing the sights as we went.

Karpathos’s main town centre, Pigadia, is where most of the action happens, with a number of family restaurants, bars and shops, all of which are easily walkable.

But to get the most out of the island you’ll want to hire a car. Just beware of the winding roads!

Karpathos may not boast a lively nightlife, but what it does have is a gobsmackingly gorgeous selection of beaches.

There are more than 110 to discover — some of the smaller ones don’t even have names.

We arrived at a tiny hidden one with the sort of crystal clear waters I’ve only ever seen in Hawaii

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And you can quite easily stumble across a beach and have it completely to yourselves.

We arrived at a tiny hidden one with the sort of crystal clear waters I’ve only ever seen in Hawaii.

Another five-minute drive down the road and you’ll come across another, then another.

Some of the sandy beaches are flanked by restaurants and places to grab a beer, like Lefkos and Limniatis, while most of the pebble shores tend to be deserted.

Take your pick, the world is very much your oyster here.

It’s hard to choose a favourite among the dozen we visited but Achata Beach wins.

I love how it’s swallowed by mountains and has hardly anything surrounding it.

You can rent a lounger for 20 euros and there’s a bar serving food and drinks straight to loungers.

Away from the sunloungers, there is a range of coastal activities for all the family, dotted along the island.

We took a windsurfing lesson one day, guided by patient surfing pros. Another day we embarked on a bumpy motorboat trip, which took us to the uninhibited Saria Island, to the north of Karpathos.

Women in charge

As well as seeing the beautifully remote landscapes, we snorkelled through a cave soaking up the sight of colourful fish in the most breathtaking setting.

For those seeking more culture, the mountain village of Olympus is a must, with narrow paths and old houses built into slopes.

You’ll see women dressed in traditional embroidered clothing — and this is one of the rare places in the world where women are traditionally in charge.

Go to Olympus in the later part of the day to avoid the surge of visitors and you’ll get one of the best unobstructed views of the sunset ever.

And what goes perfectly with sunsets? Sundowners. I’ve never been more satisfied, in terms of choice, quality and price when it comes to drinks and dining.

Restaurants are largely family-run establishments bursting with genuinely friendly people desperate for you to try some traditional grub. And meals cost far less than in a chain eatery in the UK.

You can stick to the familiar burgers and pasta, but if you’re looking for a local speciality I highly recommend the saganaki, a slab of cheese pan-fried, giving it a golden-brown crispy crust.

My favourite came from the Maxim family restaurant.

Zucchini croquettes were another top pick; Orea restaurant does them best.

Oh, and did I mention the tiropitakia — feta cheese wrapped in a flaky pastry drizzled with honey? I could go on.

Best of all, everything is made with sharing in mind so you don’t have to miss out on anything.

As for drink, don’t be surprised if the owner comes to have a shot of Akai with you at your table.

But for something a bit softer there’s beer and Greek lager such as Mythos for only a few euros.

Maybe Karpathos has more of a party atmosphere than it first let on . . .