Universities, several Northeast states, and the US Forest Service have their eyes on the winter moth due to its destruction. They were first discovered in Massachusetts in the 1990s.
Massachusetts officials hope the public will help them gather intelligence on an invasive critter now known to be making its way into Western Massachusetts for the first time after it defoliated thousands of trees along coastal New England.
It's the winter moth, and officials are urging residents to complete an online survey to help track them. Officials also say they are confident that a parasitic fly being used to kill the moths will keep them in check.
Joseph Elkinton, professor of environmental conservation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is one of the nation's leading experts on the winter moth.
He said that while there is cause for concern in Western Massachusetts, to date the invasive, tree-defoliating moth has been unable to make its destructive presence felt in the central and western areas of the state.
"They have spread slowly but surely westward -- observed as far westward as Turners Falls; but we do not have defoliation in Western Mass. yet," Elkinton said, noting that large bands of them have not been able to survive and defoliate trees after their arrival here.
Nonetheless, he said, the number of insects, which carry no noticeable odor, are on the uptick in the region.
"This year we’ve noticed more of them than usual. We’ve been catching a lot of them but that does mean there is outbreak. There is not millions," he said.
“Roughly the eastern third of Massachusetts has experienced defoliation over the past 10 years. It is a significant problem," Elkinton said. The moths destroy trees when they defoliate the same ones year after year.
Universities, several northeast states, and the US Forest Service have their eyes on the winter moth due to its destructive power. Scientists know winter moths as Operophtera brumata. They were first discovered in Massachusetts in the 1990s.
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Female winter mothPhotos courtesy of Mass. Dept. Agricultural Resources “Winter moth caterpillars are highly efficient tree defoliators, often stripping the leaves of oaks, maples and other hardwood trees down to lacey skeletons,” according to the state Department of Agriculture.
This is the time of year when adults mate. They emerge from the soil and are active until January. Their offspring hatch in early spring – right when trees are budding and the caterpillars then begin to defoliate trees.
Data from the moth survey will be analyzed by the UMass Extension Service. The online survey is at http://massnrc.org/pests/blog/2013/11/2013-winter-moth-survey.html.
Researchers want to know in what communities the moths are seen, how many were observed at one time and whether they were seen fluttering near outdoor lights, near a home, or inside a vehicle or building.
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Male winter moth ![wintermoth04]()
Winter moth larvae. Photo: Bob Childs, University of Massachusetts The moth originated in Europe and came to North American more than 50 years ago.
According to Elkington, they are not a problem in Europe because they have predators, but there are no naturally occurring creatures to thwart them here in the northeast. But researchers discovered that a parasitic Tachanid fly, Cyzenis albicans, has been an effective predator and eats only the winter moths.
As a result, researchers in tandem with government officials have been releasing batches of the fly to destroy the moths.
"No natural controls are known to be present in Massachusetts, but researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst are actively collecting and rearing a parasitic fly that was very effective at controlling winter moth outbreaks in eastern Canada and the Pacific Northwest," the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation said in a statement.
Unfortunately, effective biological control is many years away, researchers say. Meanwhile, recently defoliated trees may require a pesticide to allow them to recover from the moths.
In a recent bulletin, the US Forest Service said a systemic regional survey on the moths had not been conducted since 2007.
Elkinton is confident that the parasitic fly, which comes from Europe originally, will eventually bring the moths under control in eastern Massachusetts and keep them from ever doing damage here.
The environmental professor said researchers have been able to measure the fly's effectiveness and the fly has been successfully tracked.
"We have recovered the fly in several sites where it has taken hold. We are quite confident we are on track …to make winter moths a matter of history," Elkinton said.
