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Efforts are currently underway to map the extent of the Phragmites die-offs in the delta and coastal Louisiana. Analysis of satellite imagery by the US Army Corps of Engineers suggests die-offs may have begun earlier than 2016, and comparison of NDVI between years gives some indication of the severity of the die-offs in the delta.
A census has also been taken of Phragmites populations across the state to assess the extent of the invasion by the scale. As of fall 2017, the scale appears to be wide spread among the southeastern parishes, but completely absent from western coastal Louisiana.
Update January 2019:
Over the course of 2018, no new scale populations were detected at sites where the scale was previously recorded as absent. Additionally, to confirm the absence of the scale beyond Louisiana, sampling was conducted of Phragmites stands along the Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama Gulf Coasts. With the exception of a single scale population being discovered in Port Arthur, TX, scale populations seem to be mostly limited to the area surrounding the Mississippi River Delta.
The LSU AgCenter and the LSU College of Agriculture
