Scientists aim to control agricultural pest from US

An invasive pest that has been spreading across China and poses a major threat to agriculture, originated in Florida in the United States, a discovery scientists hope will help bring it under control.

Researchers from several institutes, including the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, made the conclusion after genetic analysis of 318 samples of Spodoptera frugiperda, or fall armyworm, collected from 13 provincial-level regions, the academy said on Monday.

The pest has spread to at least 18 provincial-level regions since it was first discovered in January in Yunnan province, and is spreading north, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.