Where are all the Caterpillers coming from ?

[TizMe]

We are in Ga and are seeing an enormous amount of Caterpillars this spring for some reason. Is anyone else have an infestation on the crawlies as well ?

The kids love it because they catch them and feed them but they are on cars, porches, pool decks .... they are everywhere! We were sitting out by our fire pit last night and they were crawling up our pant legs even !

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

About 6-7 years ago they had an outbreak like that up in Wisconsin - it was the Gypsy Moth or something. They were everywhere! Falling from the trees, landing on you....they were literally every 8-10 inches covering the ground, you couldn't walk without stepping on them. Very damaging to the trees up there. Then the following year they were there but not as bad, then the following year it was these giant non-biting flies that came to eat the larve, and then they were bad for 2 years and then things got back to normal! Weird stuff

 

[TizMe]

Its not to the point where you cant walk without stepping on them or they are falling out of the trees on you but it just seems everywhere you turn you see one ....

 

[Butterfly]

Its not to the point where you cant walk without stepping on them or they are falling out of the trees on you but it just seems everywhere you turn you see one ....

Arriving home from a trip about two weeks ago, we found them crawling around out back.

DH took a closer look and found about a dozen nests in the red tips and several nests in the chain-link fence Never saw that before.

DH sprayed the nests w/triazicide bug spray stuff and the problem went away.....almost. I see maybe one or two a day ambling across the deck to the pool.

As a child I played with them, too. But now, they are just kinda' gross :|

 

[duraleigh]

About 4 years ago, we had an unbelievable hatch of about 1.5 inch creepy-crawlers that we could never identify. They were unbelievably thick (thousands each day in the pool) and had a kind of sickening minty odor to them when they piled up in big masses.

This went on for maybe two springs and the last two years, they have been non-existant. I think (like Arnold) they "be back")

 

[MikeInTN]

About 4 years ago, we had an unbelievable hatch of about 1.5 inch creepy-crawlers that we could never identify. They were unbelievably thick (thousands each day in the pool) and had a kind of sickening minty odor to them when they piled up in big masses.

This went on for maybe two springs and the last two years, they have been non-existant. I think (like Arnold) they "be back")

Kinda OT, but the sickening odor statement made me think of it. If you know someone that you absolutely despise and want to make their life a living heck, hide a bag of Japanese beetles in their car or house and wait a few days. We used to hang the traps on some trees out back, and the very first time I had captured a bagful of them, I made the mistake of tying it off an throwing it in the garbage can in the garage. I came out the next morning and about puked when I opened the door into the garage. It honestly smelled like something had died and rotted in the garage. I ended up burying the bag of dead beetles and scrubbed the trash can with bleach at least twice, and it STILL stank! From then on I would take the bags, tie them off, put them in a ziplock bag, put that in an old coffee can, and tape it up before I threw it away. We finally learned that the traps actually draw the bugs in from the surrounding yards, so we stopped putting them up. I can honestly say I've never smelled anything so awful in my life, and that includes dead animals and skunks.

 

[lulupalooza]

WOW we haven't had to many catapillars yet. I guess which is a good thing,LOL my almost 5 yr has been catching everyone he has found thus far. So far only 4. Last year we had a bunch!

My 9 yr old is into collecting the ant lions from around the pool. He's got them in 8 clear plastic cups laid on the kitchen counter. And he goes outside each day and collects ants and feeds them to the ant lions.

Gotta love little BOYS! :lol:

 

[MikeInTN]

What in the world is an ant lion? I don't think I've ever heard of such a critter!

 

[Casey]

What in the world is an ant lion? I don't think I've ever heard of such a critter!

Little OT but to answer the question... I had no idea either but how bout a youtube clip?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWkfAyfBDHE

 

[lulupalooza]

Thanks Casey for that clip,LOL! That is an ant lion! We have them all around the pool area, since our sand is just that. White, sandy dirt. I made Jon release them all yesterday, he protested of course. I just couldn't see 8 clear plastic cups with dirt and ant lions floating around inside the house-specifically his bedroom.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Now I have seen it all ...that was a facsinating clip. I have never heard of them before. Isn't nature amazing....

 

[Ohm_Boy]

I've always heard then called "doodle bugs". Maybe it's just a southern thing.