The Year of the Gypsy Moths?

I wonder if this will be the year that the gypsy moths finally discover the beautiful oaks that surround my backyard. I know they are closing in on us because last summer, I saw more and more trees on the west side of Madison with burlap wrapped around their trunks (the idea is that the larvae hide in the burlap and you capture and kill them).

Gypsy moths can defoliate and even kill trees. The larvae climb up and down the trunk feeding during the night and hiding in cracks and crevices around the tree during the day. Newly-hatched larvae hang from the trees on silken threads and can be carried in the wind to other trees. The egg masses make a disgusting mess and can be spread by landing on vehicles that unknowingly drive them to a new place to wreak havoc. As an added bonus, a person can have an allergic reaction to the egg cases or to the hairs on a caterpillar’s body. Yes, I’m really looking forward to a gypsy moth invasion.

The DNR conducts aerial spraying to help control the spread of gypsy moths. They use Bt which is a naturally occurring soil bacterium that causes the larvae to become paralyzed, stop feeding and starve to death. Bt has been show to be safe on humans, wildlife and other insects.

The DNR allows residents to request that their properties not be sprayed. Obviously it would be nearly impossible to single out one property while spraying from an airplane, so when someone makes such a request, the whole neighborhood is left off the spraying program. The entire city of Madison was sprayed last spring. Guess which neighborhood was left out. Yup. Mine. One person complained.

My guess is that the same person will complain again this year and we will be left to fend for ourselves once again.

Gypsy moth egg masses have to be destroyed between October and April. Our neighborhood newsletter recently had an article explaining what we need to do:

“You can scrape the egg masses into a container of soapy water and let them sit for 48 hours, being careful not to drop any eggs on the ground during the scraping process, as these will hatch in the spring. You can also microwave the soapy water for two minutes to kill the eggs.”

Yeah, I’ll get right on that. Curiously, the article doesn’t mention where I’m supposed to dispose of my microwave once I’ve cooked bug eggs in it. YECHHHHHHHHHHH!