Japan is sounding the alarm against the inexorable march of the fall armyworm, as reports of damage by the pest in Asia following its spread in Africa are increasing, threatening Japan with infestation.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has warned of significant damage to farm products unless authorities and farmers take appropriate measures to remove the insect in a timely fashion.

First detected in Kagoshima Prefecture in July last year, the fall armyworm has caused damage in about 30 of the nation’s 47 prefectures.

It devours the leaves and stems of about 80 plant species, including such economically important plants as corn, sorghum, vegetables and rice, before emerging from caterpillar form to become an adult moth.

Given that the fall armyworm’s numbers in Japan are currently small, damage to the nation’s agriculture has been minor so far. But the ministry is advising farmers to kill the crop-hungry caterpillars when they detect them and report cases to authorities in an effort to curb a further spread.

Masaya Matsumura, a pest control expert at the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, said preventing a further infestation requires concerted actions by affected countries,

“Efforts by one individual country alone are unlikely to yield fruitful results when the pest spreads from one country to another,” Matsumura said.

Native to tropical and subtropical regions of the North and South Americas, the fall armyworm has spread rapidly to Africa, India, Southeast Asia and China since 2016. It was detected in South Korea and Taiwan in June last year.