Lacawac Hiking Trails
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Gypsy Moth Caterpillars
Lymantria dispar dispar

The gypsy moth has been a major pest in the northeastern United States for centuries. Back in 1869 the moths were brought here to start a silkworm industry, and managed to escape captivity soon after.
Picture


Picture

Egg masses appear as 1.5 inch tan colored hairs on tree trunks. Males are grayish brown and can fly. Females are larger and white with black marks but cannot fly.

The gypsy moth caterpillar has a preference for the leaves of deciduous hardwood trees such as maple, elm, and particularly oak.  Gypsy moths can also feed on apple, alder, birch, poplar, and willow trees.  As it grows it will also attack evergreens like pines and spruces.  Gypsy moths appear to dislike ashes, sycamores, butternuts, black walnuts, dogwoods and balsams.  However, during heavy infestations, competition for food will drive the caterpillar to attack almost any tree or shrub.

Most deciduous trees can survive a moderate degree of defoliation. Many can even survive a complete defoliation by the gypsy moth caterpillar.  However, continuing attacks can fatally weaken a tree or leave it vulnerable to other insects or disease.




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About lacawac sanctuary

Lacawac Sanctuary Field Station and Environmental Education Center is an independent, non-profit, environmental education organization located on the shore of Lake Wallenp​aupack in the Northern Poconos.  We operate solely on program fees, memberships, sponsorships, grants and private donations from people like you

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  • Home
  • About
    • Sources
    • Contact Us
  • Visitors Center
    • Native Plant Garden
    • Bees
    • Weather Station
  • Historic Great Camp Trail
    • Connell Park
    • Sustainable Forestry
    • Hemlock Woolly Adelgid
    • Early Years
    • Field Station
  • Lake Lacawac Trail
    • White Pine
    • Eastern Hemlock
    • Sphagnum Moss
    • Blueberry Bushes
    • Bog Plants
    • Lake Lacawac
    • Glacial Bog
    • Pickerelweed
    • Diversity of Birds
    • Glacial Erratic Rock
    • American Black Bear >
      • Diet
      • Population
      • Reproduction
  • Big Lake Trail
    • Food Web
    • North American Beaver
    • Osprey
    • Watershed
    • Japanese Barberry >
      • Characteristics
      • Threat to Forest
      • Control Methods
    • Minerals & Rocks >
      • Minerals
      • Igneous Rocks
      • Sedimentary Rocks
      • Metamorphic Rocks
      • Identification
    • Sugar Maple
    • Streams
    • Hydroelectric Dam
    • Lake Wallenpaupack >
      • Electricity Generation
      • Recreation
      • Watershed Management
    • Wild Grapevines
    • Hayscented Fern
  • Maurice Broun Trail
    • Fields & Meadows
    • Stone Walls
    • Gypsy Moth Caterpillars
    • Oak Trees >
      • White Oak
      • Red Oak
      • Black Oak
    • Raccoons
    • Owls
    • Snakes >
      • Snake ID
    • Bats >
      • Bat Houses
  • Ledges Trail
    • Deer Exclosures
    • Geological Faults >
      • Normal Fault
      • Reverse Fault
      • Strike-slip Fault
    • Wild Orchids
    • Ledges
    • Ferns
    • Mosses & Lichen
    • Vernal Pools
    • Mushrooms
  • Warbler Trail
  • Partner Ridge Trail
  • Watres Trail
    • Edge Effect
    • Hummocks and Hollows
  • Carriage-Lakefront Trails
    • Native Fish
    • Lake Research
    • Aquatic Vegatation
    • Plankton
    • Lake Succession >
      • Oligotrophic Lake
      • Mesotrophic Lake
      • Eutrophic Lake