View Full Version : Another Annoying Bug.
Northwest New Jersey has a very bad infestation of gypsy moth caterpillars this year. By the time most thruhikers arrive here I suspect there will be a great deal of defoliation, not to mention millions of juicy caterpillars and tons of their droppings falling on everything. On really bad years the streams look like tea or cola due to tannin being leached from the caterpillar droppings and fallen leaves.
The mosquitoes and ticks will have some competition this year for the most annoying bug award.
Is the gypsy moth damaging other areas also?
Toolshed
06-09-2007, 09:11
Gypsy Moths?? I thought we were getting hit with the ElmSpan Worms this year.... Maybe we are being hit with both?
Nightwalker
06-09-2007, 10:10
By the time most thruhikers arrive here I suspect there will be a great deal of defoliation, not to mention millions of juicy caterpillars and tons of their droppings falling on everything.
Free calories!
saimyoji
06-09-2007, 10:17
Gypsy Moths?? I thought we were getting hit with the ElmSpan Worms this year.... Maybe we are being hit with both?
As a result of that prediction most townships are NOT spraying for gypsy moth larvea....guess what there'll be lots of next year? :rolleyes:
Northwest New Jersey (especially around High Point) had a terrible gypsy moth infestation last year, too. 2 straight years is bad news for the trees--they can't survive getting defoliated once, but if it happens for a few straight years, a lot of trees will die.
Moon Monster
06-09-2007, 12:36
I walked some trails in the Poconos last year that were being hit hard. It sounded like rain there were so many munching away. One stretch of trail as far as I could see through the trees had lost every leaf on any tree/shrub shorter than head-height.
One even bit me after it dropped on my neck. It hurt 10x worse than any black fly bite.
There will be some tree mortalitiy, there always is. Where the trail cuts through Maryland and PA was completely defoliated by gypsy moths 15-20 years ago for 3-4 years in row ( I worked for the state counting gypsy moth egg masses then). Everyone predicted dire consequences for the oaks but, although quite a few died, there are still oaks there. Gypsy moths hate tulip poplars and they will be come more common in areas of infestation. When their population peaks, they get a virus that turns their inside to mush and they will go away for a while.
Could someone post a picture of the caterpillar? I was hiking Maryland and I stopped for the night and there were these tiny caterpillars everywhere. I even squished one on my hat when I readjusted it. I hate carnage. They were all over my tent and literally everywhere (slight exaggeration). I thought I could film a movie entitled "Attack of the annoying caterpillars" It's true.
Heather, This link has some good photos. Gypsy moth caterpillars are tiny when they first hatch, but grow to about 2" to 2-1/2" long. They prefer oak trees, but in badly infested areas they eat everything.
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/gypsymoth/index.aspx
Toolshed
06-12-2007, 06:43
another link - To the Elm Spanworm.
http://www.forestpests.org/hardwood/elmspanworm.html
i did the maryland section a few weeks ago and the little buggers got all over my pack,tent,me and anything in sight.They were hanging on the little string they produce like ornimants from the trees. And the droppings....holy s^!t!!! It sounded like a constant rain.YUK
mweinstone
06-13-2007, 06:41
lonewolfs a gypsy moth. he flys to the light of gypsy. will he burn? no. he stopped right at her feet, snuggled up and rested. not like other stupid moths.
Thanks for the links. I think the caterpillars I saw more closely resembled the first link, of the gypsy moths, I guess but they were more of a singular color like gray or brown. By the way...the elms in my yard are mostly dead due to an infestation although I havent seen that worm around here. Maybe the birds ate them.
Thanks for the links. I think the caterpillars I saw more closely resembled the first link, of the gypsy moths, I guess but they were more of a singular color like gray or brown. By the way...the elms in my yard are mostly dead due to an infestation although I havent seen that worm around here. Maybe the birds ate them.
Your elm trees are probably being killed by a fungus called Dutch Elm Disease. Around here elm trees will grow to 20-30 feet tall, maybe 15 years, then suddenly start to turn yellow and die within a few weeks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Elm_disease
Yeah, thats right, Dutch elm disease. I had forgotten what it was that killed them. Not good. But the caterpillars I was inundated by while hiking MD. weren't red and blue but they were everywhere.
mweinstone
06-14-2007, 06:51
is the elms burger okay?