The Fresno County Agricultural Commissioner along with the University of California Cooperative Extension has three upcoming meetings to discuss the European grapevine moth (EGVM).

First detected in Napa County in 2009, the European grapevine moth (Lobesia botrana) has been confirmed in Fresno County.

Two moths were found in separate traps one-half mile from each other on April 28. A third moth was trapped on May 1 in Kingsburg, 11 miles from the original captures near the Fowler-Del Rey area.

Fresno County meeting locations:

• May 19

Kearney Ag Center, 9240 S. Riverbend Ave., Parlier, Calif.

10:00 – 12:00 p.m.

• May 22

California Tree Fruit Agreement, 975 I Street, Reedley, Calif.

10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

• May 27

Fresno County Farm Bureau, 1274 W. Hedges, Fresno, Calif.

6:00 – 8:00 p.m.

EGVM has also been found in Sonoma, Solano, and Mendocino counties where eradication efforts are ongoing.

EGVM is a grape pest of economic importance in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, southern Russia, Japan, and recently Chile.

The larva feeds on grape flowers and developing fruit.

Second and third generations cause the most damage by direct feeding on mature grape berries and indirectly by predisposing the crop to grey mold, a fungal infection caused by Botrytis cinerea.

Damage is greatest in grape cultivars with compact clusters or sensitive to rot.