 |
| Rainy evening |
All
the rain this spring has had a few delightful side effects.
The
gardens have loved all the water, I got some worm poop out there,
which gave them a nice burst of energy and things are rapidly filling in.
I've been transplanting, dividing as needed and resetting the walls
and terraces in the back border on the sunnier days.
 |
| Practically Frothing! |
The
other effect is that the gypsy moths* may suffer sizable losses due
to fungus that reacts to moisture and is one of the few things that
can disrupt a cycle of sizable infestations.
I am
all for a sizable losses in population. Infestations like last years
are awful, it feels like a full on zombie attack. They just keep
coming... chewing, pooping and GROWING.
They
hatch in masses of tiny caterpillars about a centimeter long and as
thick as kitchen twine.
Not
much happens at first, a week or so later you begin to see a
few holes in some seedlings...
 |
| Gypsy Moth* |
Soon
they are as thick as yarn, covered in pricklies and consuming some of
the low growth, baby oaks are their favorite, stripped to twigs.
It
goes on for weeks.
Damage is widespread.
 |
| Rt 102, June 2016 |
At
3cm long first the tops then whole oaks start to go, chewed to
twigs and rags.
If
you stand still near the trees you will hear a light rainfall. Its
the sound of chewing and the poop dropping onto everything below.
 |
| Morning Walk, June 2016 |
Poop collects with a mass of leaf bits, they are sloppy as well as
voracious. Other delightful qualities include: crawling all over the
walls of houses and sheds to shelter during the day, a covering of
stiff hairs that can cause a nasty rash and they squirt green goo
when stomped on.
 |
| Poop |
They
keep growing until they are about 4 cm long then continue to swarm
from tree to tree at night. After finishing the oaks they go on to the
white pines, blueberry bushes and decorative stuff like our blue
spruce.
 |
| Damage, 2016 |
Then gestation and a huge swarm of moths that mate, lay
more masses of eggs, and finally die.
It was harrowing to me. I began to feel unhinged. I prefer the fungus.
GO
FUNGUS!!
*gypsy
moths are an introduced species in NA, They were brought here for
commercial gain, got out, spread across the country, and now wreak havoc on the native flora and fauna.
That is a perfect definition of colonization.
My thoughts on this are that if they are going to have a name that is a slur they should be named after what they act like... so I think “White Settler Moths” would be more appropriate!
