Since its introduction into the United States in 1869, the gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar), a pest of trees, has defoliated thousands of acres of hardwood forests across the Northeastern United States. Originally introduced into Massachusetts, the gypsy moth has slowly spread north to Maine and south to North Carolina, infesting 19 States and the District of Columbia. Despite State and local control efforts, the infestation has continued to move south and west.

In March 2007 the presence of the light brown apple moth (LBAM), Epiphyas postvittana, was confirmed in California by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). It was first found in Alameda County; and as of July 2007, had been found in eight San Francisco Bay area counties and in Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Los Angeles counties. The light brown apple moth is an invasive pest that attacks over 250 crops (examples include citrus, grapes and fruit tree crops) and 2,000 host and ornamental plants (examples include roses, jasmine and mums). LBAM is currently infested (and quarantines are in place) in ten Bay Area and Central Coast counties including Monterey, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, Alameda, Solano, and Santa Barbara.

Both the gypsy moth and the light brown apple moth are examples of pests treated by Dynamic Aviation’s fleet of aerial application aircraft. Mating disruption using synthetic moth pheromones confuses the male moths and prevents them from finding females, thereby stopping the mating and reproduction process. Using a variety of pheromone formulations designed to interrupt the mating habits of specific insects, Dynamic Aviation precisely dispenses these pheromone formulations from aircraft flying over pre-defined treatment zones.