South Korea battles 'lovebug' invasion amid climate change
First identified in South Korea a decade ago, Seoul is now annually hit by a weeks-long infestation of the Plecia nearctica insect, a type of March fly nicknamed "lovebug" for their distinctive mating behavior, which sees them fly around in coupled pairs.
Huge clouds of the insects, which are harmless to humans, blanket apartment walls and mountain trails and, after they quickly die, leave behind piles of rotting black remains and a foul stench.
Complaints about the bugs, which scientists believe came from southern China and have surged with rising temperatures linked to climate change, have risen sharply, Seoul city data showed.
Even BTS member RM is seen seemingly cursing upon spotting the insects in a viral video, with fellow bandmember Jin separately seen casually blowing a lovebug out of his way mid-performance.
"In general, many insects tend to grow more rapidly in warmer temperatures," Ju Jung-won, a deputy researcher at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said.
"As for the lovebugs, it looks like the temperature and environment found in foreign regions where they are active are now taking hold in South Korea as well, allowing them to survive here."
At the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon, west of Seoul, public servants wearing makeshift protective gear struggled to clear piles of dead insects, as vast swarms of the bugs circled in the air, making it hard for people in the area to keep their eyes open.
At their worst, the piles of dead lovebugs in parts of the mountain were "stacked more than 10 centimeters (four inches) high," said Jung Yong-sun, a 59-year-old official who was tasked with pest-control duties.
Walking through them, he added, "felt like stepping on something soft and cushiony."
The unpleasant odor took many by surprise.
"At first, I thought it was food waste ... Turns out, it was the stench of dead bugs," said Ahn So-young, a 29-year-old hiker.
"I cried when I came up here. I was so scared."
'Really delicious'
Park Sun-jae, a senior researcher at the National Institute of Biological Resources, said that the bugs were first reported in South Korea in Incheon in 2015.
"Since 2022, the population has begun to surge," Park said, adding that they are now "found throughout the greater Seoul metropolitan area."
This year, the infestation has been widely documented online, with content creators flocking to the worst-affected areas to cash in on the inundation.
YouTuber Kim Ji-young fans herself as lovebugs crawl over her clothes and fly around her on the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon on July 3. |
AFP-JIJI
One YouTuber collected a massive pile of the bugs and turned them into a "burger patty," mixing them into batter before frying and eating them on camera.
"It's not bad. It's really delicious," he said in the video, which has garnered more than 648,000 views.
On Gyeyangsan Mountain, content creators Kim Ji-young and Sam Jung intentionally dressed in white — a color known to attract the bugs — and filmed themselves being swarmed.
"This is probably something I'll never experience again in my lifetime," Jung said, as his hat and clothes were crawling with the bugs.
Beneficial insects?
But for many Seoul residents, the bugs aren't just a viral moment. They are disrupting daily routines.
In Daejo Market in Seoul's Eunpyeong district, restaurant owners had to constantly blow the bugs away to protect their ingredients.
Dead insects kept piling up on the floor — putting severe pressure to the workload of cleaners.
"I want to be able to eat lunch without worrying about lovebugs landing on my face or getting into my food," business owner Chang Seo-young, 48, said.
Lovebugs — seen by South Korean officials as "beneficial insects" for breaking down plant matter — typically disappear naturally by early July.
But scientists warn that given the unpredictability of the climate crisis, the possibility of insect species — including ones more harmful than lovebugs — invading the country cannot be ruled out.
"I worry that future generations will have to suffer so much," said Jeon In-hyeop, a 29-year-old visitor to Gyeyangsan Mountain, after surveying parts of the summit covered in bugs.
"I feel like our children might end up living in a much more unfortunate world."
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Japan Today
15-07-2025
- Japan Today
Rotten insects, viral videos and climate change: S Korea battles 'lovebug' invasion
First reported in Incheon in 2015, South Korea is now annually hit by a weeks-long infestation of 'lovebugs', a type of March fly By Claire LEE K-pop's BTS are grossed out by them. A YouTuber ate them. Hikers plough through them: South Korea is dealing with a "lovebug" invasion that experts say highlights worsening climate change. First identified in South Korea a decade ago, Seoul is now annually hit by a weeks-long infestation of the Plecia nearctica insect, a type of March fly nicknamed "lovebug" for their distinctive mating behavior, which sees them fly around in coupled pairs. Huge clouds of the insects, which are harmless to humans, blanket apartment walls and mountain trails and, after they quickly die, leave behind piles of rotting black remains and a foul stench. Complaints about the bugs, which scientists believe came from southern China and have surged with rising temperatures linked to climate change, have risen sharply, Seoul city data showed. Even K-pop BTS idol RM is seen seemingly cursing upon spotting the insects in a viral video, with fellow bandmember Jin separately seen casually blowing a lovebug out of his way mid-performance. "In general, many insects tend to grow more rapidly in warmer temperatures," Ju Jung-won, a deputy researcher at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, told AFP. "As for the lovebugs, it looks like the temperature and environment found in foreign regions where they are active are now taking hold in South Korea as well, allowing them to survive here." At the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon, west of Seoul, public servants wearing makeshift protective gear struggled to clear piles of dead insects, as vast swarms of the bugs circled in the air, making it hard for people in the area to keep their eyes open. At their worst, the piles of dead lovebugs in parts of the mountain were "stacked more than 10 centimeters high," said Jung Yong-sun, 59, who was tasked with pest-control duties. Walking through them, he added, "felt like stepping on something soft and cushiony." The unpleasant odor took many by surprise. "At first, I thought it was food waste... Turns out, it was the stench of dead bugs," said Ahn So-young, a 29-year-old hiker. "I cried when I came up here. I was so scared." Park Sun-jae, a senior researcher at the National Institute of Biological Resources, told AFP that the bugs were first reported in South Korea in Incheon in 2015. "Since 2022, the population has begun to surge," Park said, adding that they were now "found throughout the greater Seoul metropolitan area". This year, the infestation has been widely documented online, with content creators flocking to the worst-affected areas to cash in on the inundation. One YouTuber collected a massive pile of the bugs and turned them into a "burger patty", mixing them into batter before frying and eating them on camera. "It's not bad. It's really delicious," he said in the video, which has garnered more than 648,000 views. On Gyeyangsan Mountain, content creators Kim Ji-young and Sam Jung intentionally dressed in white — a color known to attract the bugs — and filmed themselves being swarmed. "This is probably something I'll never experience again in my lifetime," Jung said, as his hat and clothes were crawling with the bugs. But for many Seoul residents, the bugs aren't just a viral moment. They are disrupting daily routines. In Daejo Market in Seoul's Eunpyeong district, restaurant owners had to constantly blow the bugs away to protect their ingredients. Dead insects kept piling up on the floor -- putting severe pressure to the cleaners' workload. "I want to be able to eat lunch without worrying about lovebugs landing on my face or getting into my food," business owner Chang Seo-young, 48, told AFP. Lovebugs -— seen by South Korean officials as "beneficial insects" for breaking down plant matter —- typically disappear naturally by early July. But scientists warn that given the unpredictability of the climate crisis, the possibility of insect species -- including ones more harmful than lovebugs -- invading the country cannot be ruled out. "I worry that future generations will have to suffer so much," said Jeon In-hyeop, a 29-year-old visitor to Gyeyangsan Mountain, after surveying parts of the summit covered in bugs. "I feel like our children might end up living in a much more unfortunate world." © 2025 AFP
Japan Times
10-07-2025
- Japan Times
In Indonesia, a startup captures coolants to stop global warming
In the basement of a Jakarta housing complex, surrounded by the silver piping of the air-conditioning system, Indonesian technician Ari Sobaruddin is doing his part to tackle climate change. Ari and his colleagues will spend 12 hours capturing AC refrigerant to stop this "super-pollutant" — thousands of times more potent than carbon dioxide — from leaking into the atmosphere. It is plodding, sweaty work, but Ari, a member of climate startup Recoolit, does not mind. "I love it because it's about preserving nature, saving nature," the 30-year-old technician said. Recoolit began working in Indonesia in 2021 to tackle what it considers an often-overlooked contributor to climate change: refrigerants. These gases found in air-conditioners, fridges and cars are an old environmental problem. In the 1970s, research showed refrigerants called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were destroying the ozone layer. Countries agreed to phase them out under a deal that came into force in 1989. While their replacements, particularly hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), are less harmful to the ozone layer, they still have major climate-warming properties. "And those are in AC units, in the form of refrigerant banks ... everywhere in developing countries right now," said Recoolit's head of operations Yosaka Eka Putranta. 'Growing problem' There are international agreements to phase out HFCs too, but, particularly in developing countries, they will be in use for decades yet. Demand is increasing as climate change fuels record temperatures and expanding middle classes seek cooling and refrigeration. "It is a growing problem because we need our indoor environments to be more resilient to climate change," said Robyn Schofield, associate professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of Melbourne. A field and warehouse officer for climate startup Recoolit checks AC refrigerant stored in cylinders at the company's warehouse in Jakarta on June 12. | AFP-JIJI HFCs are expected to account for between 7% and 19% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to the United Nations. The risk comes during maintenance or disposal, when refrigerants like the HFC Ari is capturing can be released accidentally or on purpose. In Indonesia, as in most countries, this venting is illegal, but enforcement is limited. "It's odourless, we cannot trace it. (Capturing) it takes so much resources. The machine, the people," said Recoolit's senior business development manager Erik Cahyanta. "So some people just release it." Recoolit trains, equips and incentivises technicians to capture refrigerant so it can be destroyed. Technicians get 50,000 rupiah ($3) per kilogram of recovered refrigerant, which Recoolit sends to a government-approved cement kiln or municipal incinerator to be destroyed. While refrigerant can be recycled or reused, Recoolit argues this is imperfect. "Who's going to guarantee that when the refrigerants are injected again ... they are going to stay there without another venting?" said Yosaka. Big tech interest Recoolit sells carbon credits based on the amount of refrigerant it destroys, priced at $75 a unit. Carbon credits have faced criticism in recent years, and Benja Faecks of Carbon Market Watch warned that "offsetting" can give the impression "that emissions can simply be erased through financial transactions." This allows "polluters to claim 'carbon neutrality' or 'negating ongoing emissions' without actually reducing their own emissions," she said. Recoolit argues its carbon credits are robust because it measurably destroys a climate-warming gas. While many carbon credits are sold on exchanges with third-party verification, Recoolit sells directly to buyers and uses a credit methodology developed by the Carbon Containment Lab, a nonprofit spun out from Yale University. Yosaka said canisters are sampled, and analysis is then done by the region's only qualified lab, in Malaysia, to confirm the contents are refrigerants. Destruction facilities pass a "trial burn test" confirming they can break down refrigerants. Recoolit also pays less than the market price for coolants to avoid creating a market for new refrigerants. Refrigerant destruction remains a relatively small part of the carbon market. Existing players include U.S.-based Tradewater, which grew out of California's state-level emissions caps and has worked in Latin America and Africa. But Recoolit has attracted attention from one of the market's biggest corporate players: Google. Earlier this year, the tech giant announced a partnership with Recoolit and a second company to prevent emissions equivalent to 1 million tons of carbon dioxide. Google says it wants to help Recoolit scale up operations and expand outside Indonesia. Some critics say refrigerant capture should simply be enforced by government policy, but Recoolit argues it is filling a real-world gap unlikely to be addressed otherwise. And Schofield said the need for refrigerant capture is significant. "As a climate action ... it's a very good one," she said. "I wish we had more of it."
Japan Times
09-07-2025
- Japan Times
South Korea battles 'lovebug' invasion amid climate change
K-pop's BTS are grossed out by them. A YouTuber ate them. Hikers plow through them: South Korea is dealing with a "lovebug" invasion that experts say highlights worsening climate change. First identified in South Korea a decade ago, Seoul is now annually hit by a weeks-long infestation of the Plecia nearctica insect, a type of March fly nicknamed "lovebug" for their distinctive mating behavior, which sees them fly around in coupled pairs. Huge clouds of the insects, which are harmless to humans, blanket apartment walls and mountain trails and, after they quickly die, leave behind piles of rotting black remains and a foul stench. Complaints about the bugs, which scientists believe came from southern China and have surged with rising temperatures linked to climate change, have risen sharply, Seoul city data showed. Even BTS member RM is seen seemingly cursing upon spotting the insects in a viral video, with fellow bandmember Jin separately seen casually blowing a lovebug out of his way mid-performance. "In general, many insects tend to grow more rapidly in warmer temperatures," Ju Jung-won, a deputy researcher at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said. "As for the lovebugs, it looks like the temperature and environment found in foreign regions where they are active are now taking hold in South Korea as well, allowing them to survive here." At the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon, west of Seoul, public servants wearing makeshift protective gear struggled to clear piles of dead insects, as vast swarms of the bugs circled in the air, making it hard for people in the area to keep their eyes open. At their worst, the piles of dead lovebugs in parts of the mountain were "stacked more than 10 centimeters (four inches) high," said Jung Yong-sun, a 59-year-old official who was tasked with pest-control duties. Walking through them, he added, "felt like stepping on something soft and cushiony." The unpleasant odor took many by surprise. "At first, I thought it was food waste ... Turns out, it was the stench of dead bugs," said Ahn So-young, a 29-year-old hiker. "I cried when I came up here. I was so scared." 'Really delicious' Park Sun-jae, a senior researcher at the National Institute of Biological Resources, said that the bugs were first reported in South Korea in Incheon in 2015. "Since 2022, the population has begun to surge," Park said, adding that they are now "found throughout the greater Seoul metropolitan area." This year, the infestation has been widely documented online, with content creators flocking to the worst-affected areas to cash in on the inundation. YouTuber Kim Ji-young fans herself as lovebugs crawl over her clothes and fly around her on the peak of Gyeyangsan Mountain in Incheon on July 3. | AFP-JIJI One YouTuber collected a massive pile of the bugs and turned them into a "burger patty," mixing them into batter before frying and eating them on camera. "It's not bad. It's really delicious," he said in the video, which has garnered more than 648,000 views. On Gyeyangsan Mountain, content creators Kim Ji-young and Sam Jung intentionally dressed in white — a color known to attract the bugs — and filmed themselves being swarmed. "This is probably something I'll never experience again in my lifetime," Jung said, as his hat and clothes were crawling with the bugs. Beneficial insects? But for many Seoul residents, the bugs aren't just a viral moment. They are disrupting daily routines. In Daejo Market in Seoul's Eunpyeong district, restaurant owners had to constantly blow the bugs away to protect their ingredients. Dead insects kept piling up on the floor — putting severe pressure to the workload of cleaners. "I want to be able to eat lunch without worrying about lovebugs landing on my face or getting into my food," business owner Chang Seo-young, 48, said. Lovebugs — seen by South Korean officials as "beneficial insects" for breaking down plant matter — typically disappear naturally by early July. But scientists warn that given the unpredictability of the climate crisis, the possibility of insect species — including ones more harmful than lovebugs — invading the country cannot be ruled out. "I worry that future generations will have to suffer so much," said Jeon In-hyeop, a 29-year-old visitor to Gyeyangsan Mountain, after surveying parts of the summit covered in bugs. "I feel like our children might end up living in a much more unfortunate world."
