Spongy moths- does anyone have any advice?

[Hudsongirl]

I am in NY and there is a spongy moth caterpillar infestation like nothing I've ever seen. I'm not normally freaked out by bugs, but for me these guys cause a poison ivy type rash that isn't itchy so much as painful welts. Swimming with them isn't really an option and today while trying to swim I literally scooped and killed between 1 and 2 hundred of them at the edge of the pool and out of the water. The longest we counted without one making its way onto the coping was 11 seconds.

I'm at a loss, the web says these things will be around until end of June before they pupate. Is there anything I can do. Any chance diatomaceous earth will deter them? We use a very powerful insecticide called Onsalught fastcap for paper wasps but I try not to use it too much because we don't want to hurt the bee population. I'm at the point where I'm close to spraying down my whole yard and wooded area with the stuff because I can't be outside right now- they are literally every 2-3 feet.

 

[PoolGate]

Sometimes going nuclear is the only option.

Have you tried an exterminator?

 

[JRzMom]

I am in NY and there is a spongy moth caterpillar infestation like nothing I've ever seen. I'm not normally freaked out by bugs, but for me these guys cause a poison ivy type rash that isn't itchy so much as painful welts. Swimming with them isn't really an option and today while trying to swim I literally scooped and killed between 1 and 2 hundred of them at the edge of the pool and out of the water. The longest we counted without one making its way onto the coping was 11 seconds.

I'm at a loss, the web says these things will be around until end of June before they pupate. Is there anything I can do. Any chance diatomaceous earth will deter them? We use a very powerful insecticide called Onsalught fastcap for paper wasps but I try not to use it too much because we don't want to hurt the bee population. I'm at the point where I'm close to spraying down my whole yard and wooded area with the stuff because I can't be outside right now- they are literally every 2-3 feet.

We had a bad year with them in 2022 in Saratoga County. Completely deforested our woods. They even ate the pine needles. I used Monterey LG 6334 BT Biological Insecticide, 32 oz, White, on all of my ornamental trees around the house, and it was very effective. You have to leave the dead ones hanging so they infect any newly hatched with the bacteria. As for the woods, we just had to let them go. They did manage to grow back leaves, but two years later, several oaks haven't recovered. Good luck!

 

[Hudsongirl]

Sometimes going nuclear is the only option.

Have you tried an exterminator?

I haven't because we have our own electric sprayer backpack and we're pretty used to taking care of pest on our own, the last time we needed an exterminator he has the same equipment and was using the Onslaught insecticide that we can buy online without needing special licensing. It's my experience that outdoor pest control, like pool maintenance, isn't worth paying someone else to do.

 

[Hudsongirl]

We had a bad year with them in 2022 in Saratoga County. Completely deforested our woods. They even ate the pine needles. I used Monterey LG 6334 BT Biological Insecticide, 32 oz, White, on all of my ornamental trees around the house, and it was very effective. You have to leave the dead ones hanging so they infect any newly hatched with the bacteria. As for the woods, we just had to let them go. They did manage to grow back leaves, but two years later, several oaks haven't recovered. Good luck!

Thanks for this looks like the stuff you linked is the same active ingredient as a product I have arriving today- which is meant to "poison" them with BTS but unfortunately we have a lot of adults and this stuff needs to be ingested by them and works better on the smaller ones. I'm still going to spray it today and then probably this weekend when the patio crew isn't outside working I'll go nuclear with the Onslaught at least for the living areas like porches, patios and pool surround.

It's really incredible the damage these things to do! So far my trees are showing some damage but are overall healthy looking. I've heard taping around the trunks can help, but I can't really imagine doing that to 100+ trees

 

[JRzMom]

Thanks for this looks like the stuff you linked is the same active ingredient as a product I have arriving today- which is meant to "poison" them with BTS but unfortunately we have a lot of adults and this stuff needs to be ingested by them and works better on the smaller ones. I'm still going to spray it today and then probably this weekend when the patio crew isn't outside working I'll go nuclear with the Onslaught at least for the living areas like porches, patios and pool surround.

It's really incredible the damage these things to do! So far my trees are showing some damage but are overall healthy looking. I've heard taping around the trunks can help, but I can't really imagine doing that to 100+ trees

My ex had success with duct tape. He wrapped it sticky side out around his trees. They got stuck on it and died. He had to replace it often, but it seemed to help. Some people use folded burlap around the tree trunk. They get caught in the fold. You still have to inspect and squish them every day. It's not my favorite thing to do. Yuck! The worst part about these caterpillars is their droppings! My patio and driveway were covered in the stuff. Another yuck!

 

[SoDel]

https://dof.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/FT0068_Spongy-Moth-Control-Methods.pdf

I’d go with a tank mix spray of permethrin mixed with pyriproxyfen for the plants. They are both relatively inexpensive and readily available as concentrates. If you spray permethrin around the pool deck, the caterpillars are unlikely to crawl across it. Respray after rain.

 

[Hudsongirl]

https://dof.virginia.gov/wp-content/uploads/FT0068_Spongy-Moth-Control-Methods.pdf

I’d go with a tank mix spray of permethrin mixed with pyriproxyfen for the plants. They are both relatively inexpensive and readily available as concentrates. If you spray permethrin around the pool deck, the caterpillars are unlikely to crawl across it. Respray after rain.

Thanks- it looks like prallethrin, one of the active ingredients in the broad spectrum insecticide we use now, is in this same category of insecticides. I'll take a look into this particular combo though because I'll try anything at this point. I try under most circumstances to be relaxed about wildlife because that's what we get for living near woods, but the rashes these things are giving me are brutal- raised, bumpy, and painful, and I can't take it anymore.

 

[SoDel]

Thanks- it looks like prallethrin, one of the active ingredients in the broad spectrum insecticide we use now, is in this same category of insecticides. I'll take a look into this particular combo though because I'll try anything at this point. I try under most circumstances to be relaxed about wildlife because that's what we get for living near woods, but the rashes these things are giving me are brutal- raised, bumpy, and painful, and I can't take it anymore.

Prallelthin should work very well at adequate concentration.

I also remember an “unintended consequences” story about these caterpillars and to cut to the chase, the solution was to attract birds to eat them. As much as I know on that method but seems a lot more long term than your present infestation would allow . Maybe for next season.

 

[Hudsongirl]

Prallelthin should work very well at adequate concentration.

I also remember an “unintended consequences” story about these caterpillars and to cut to the chase, the solution was to attract birds to eat them. As much as I know on that method but seems a lot more long term than your present infestation would allow . Maybe for next season.

This is our 4th Spring in this home and I've never even noticed these guys before. Something cyclical about them I guess, they got so bad in our town a few weeks ago the schools had to pull the kids in for recess because there was nowhere for them to play without kids breaking out in rashes. I won't get graphic, but the rashes they leave on those of us who are allergic are pretty horrendous, just like poison ivy.

 

[Hudsongirl]

Updating- We sprayed around the pool area with Onslaught Fastcap last night and while we have a large yard and weren't able to do the whole thing we did the whole pool area, equipment pad, and as much of the edge of the nearby woods as we could before we ran out. This morning I found only 1 like caterpillar in that area and it was dangling on silk from the tree above.

This stuff was the nuclear option but it is indeed effective. We ordered the BTS bacterial killer for the ones in the woods which is kinder to other animals in the area including bees but we'll be regularly spraying the strong stuff around the house and pool for the foreseeable future.