Caterpillar ID and advice needed urgently

[Purplepixii]

My fiance's sister has a caterpillar invasion in her garden. She has been in touch with the council (Portsmouth) and they have advised her to cut down the tree/shrubs and burn them with the caterpillars in!!

Pics attached - could use some identification and urgent advice please. Apologies for the naff pic quality - I only had my mobile phone to hand not my proper camera


Pic 1 - the fluffy one!!



Pic 2 - the main type of caterpillar there (Lackey Moth?):


Pic 3 - the caterpillar "nest". Look closely at the branches where they meet other branches or the main trunk. This nest is absolutely amazing!!



I would really appreciate urgent advice about what can be done about the caterpillars - do we really have to burn them???? How can this be correct? And is there any way I can rescue them and move them somewhere safer??

Purplepixii

[mrs fish]

Looking in my book pic 2 looks like a Yellow Tail or Gold Tail moth larva, it says they like Hawthorn and Sallow but does feed on various trees.

I have seen nests like that before not sure which caterpillar it was but they can devour bushes and trees in no time especially hawthorn, the hairs can also irritate and cause rashes, they blow about in the wind.

The Northern United States are having a outbreak of a moth caterpillar at the moment the "Eastern Tent" moth caterpillar.
These outbreaks happen every few years.

[Bub-les]

The first one looks like a tiger moth caterpillar if so I wouldn't have thought it to be a major problem
The other one I haven't a clue but it does look as if it could be a major problem and probably best got rid of.
Barbara

[Purplepixii]

Thanks for the replies so far

I'm having a huge problem (conscience?) with the thought that these living things might be burned alive - guess I'm a softie!

Could they be removed from their current location and released somewhere miles away in habitat that isn't someone's garden and is therefore less of a problem? Coz if they can, that's what I'll do.

The extra-fluffy caterpillar's "furr" is an irritant, but with thick gloves and a little care that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

According to the family member, some of the caterpillars are already moths and whilst they fly at night, they return to that nest every time - part of the reason people want it moved.

Soooooo can I move them? And if so, where can I release them?

Purplepixii

[welsh.lensman]

Picture 2 certainly looks like the caterpiller of the Lackey.

picture 3: I have seen a simalar silk tent constructed by the Small Eggar moth, but they're mainly found on blackthorn or hawthorn.

[aeshna5]

1 is a "woolly bear"- larva of Garden Tiger
2 is Lackey which do have communal tents.

Though the defoliation can be severe the tree will recover. I'd leave it be if that's a possibility.

[Purplepixii]

Originally Posted by aeshna5

1 is a "woolly bear"- larva of Garden Tiger
2 is Lackey which do have communal tents.

Though the defoliation can be severe the tree will recover. I'd leave it be if that's a possibility.

Thanks Aeshna

Leaving them in situ is not a possibility unfortunately - the garden owner/s want them removed asap by whatever means possible. I don't know what to do

[haematocephalus]

Tricky situation. The second photo clearly shows a caterpillar of the Lackey - is this one of the ones in the web?

If so then there really shouldn't be any great cause for alarm. I wouldn't recommend picking up hairy caterpillars such as this in your bare hands, as there is always a chance of getting a bad reaction to them (some people are especially sensitive to such things), but as far as I know Lackeys are not noted for causing problems unless you come into close contact with them.

In Portsmouth they do frequently have trouble with caterpillars of the Brown-tail moth, another web-building species that definitely does cause problems with very irritant hairs that can be wind-blown, and do have to be considered a public health risk, so I guess that might be why the council advice was so draconian.

The Lackey caterpillars should disperse away from their web naturally in the next few weeks. However, if you are able and willing to help the garden owners then you could collect up as many of the caterpillars as possible (wear strong gloves and collect them up in a plastic tub of some sort), and then release them in a hedgerow or scrub area away from gardens. Lackey will eat a variety of plants including Hawthorn, Bramble, Blackthorn and Oak, so they're fairly resilent things.

I'm also unaware of any evidence that moths 'return to the nest'. I guess it is a theoretical possibility that the webs have some sort of pheremone attractant that would allow the next generation of moths to refind the same site, but I think that's unlikely. The adult Lackey moths aren't due to emerge until July, after the current caterpillars have dispersed, finished feeding and then pupated, so there is no chance that Lackey moths are 'returning to the nest' at the moment.

I wish you luck with them - although still a widespread species Lackey is among the many moths that have shown dramatic declines in abundance. Butterfly Conservation estimated that they have declined by 80% over the last 25 years.

Martin


Martin Harvey

[Purplepixii]

Hi Martin

The 2nd type of caterpillar (the big fluffy one) is not part of that huge "nest" - that seems to have been made by the smaller caterpillars.

Thanks for your reference to "Butterfly Conservation" - I'm going to post there too and see what other information I can glean.

Many many thanks
Purplepixii