By
Carol Stocker, Globe Staff
|
March 31, 2005
''In 1981 there were so
many gypsy moth
caterpillars, they stopped
trains that couldn't get
traction on hills because
they were slippery and
covered the tracks. They
caused car accidents, too.
It was the Year of the Gypsy
Moth. And this year is going
to be close to it!" Charles
Burnham of the state
Department of Conservation
and Recreation told a
sold-out Brockton conference
of green industry
professionals March 23.
But the problem isn't
gypsy moths this time.
Eastern tent caterpillars,
fall cankerworms, and forest
tent caterpillars are all
out of control in some
areas. ''A lot of
caterpillars are going wild.
I'm seeing ones I never saw
before," said Robert Childs,
extension
entomologist at the
University of Massachusetts
at Amherst.
The main culprit is a
European insect never before
seen on the East Coast. It's
called the winter moth
because the adult moths
emerge from their cocoons in
late November and December.
If you had a snowstorm of
these tiny moths at your
porch lights last Christmas,
your trees are in for
trouble soon, thanks to
their voracious offspring.
These will hatch as
caterpillars in about three
weeks.
(More)
Call
Now! For an early spring
application of our TARGETED
CATERPILLAR SPRAY which
affects only the
caterpillar's that inhabit
our area.
