WURTSBORO- Did you ever wonder where all of the caterpillars and moths in your yard come from?
Every 10 to 15 years in New York, the gipsy moth, also known as the spongy moth, causes thousands of acres of trees to be damaged or even completely defoliated. They don’t pose a major threat to New York’s forests, but they can seriously limit a tree’s ability to fight off disease. These moths are not native to New York.
“They are an Asian species that are exotic to our area,” said Dr. Timothy McCabe, an entomologist with the New York State Museum. According to McCabe, these were brought to the area around 1870 with the hope that they could breed to produce a better grade of silk.
Pine trees are at the greatest risk from moths, because they are unable to regrow needles if they are completely defoliated. Most other trees, like oak trees, will produce a second growth of leaves later in the season even if they are fully defoliated.
McCabe says protecting your trees from moth swarms is as simple as scraping them off of the tree into a plastic bag.
