Growing wildfires across Western Canada are forcing thousands from their homes
Thousands of people in Western Canada remain displaced from their homes as wildfires threaten their communities, triggering evacuation orders and alerts.
Picture a hairy five-centimetre-long caterpillar that can drop from tree branches onto unsuspecting passersby, has few natural predators, and can coat a tree trunk so thick you can knock them off by the hundreds with a broom. This is the gypsy moth caterpillar, and it is your creepy-crawly nightmare of the summer.
The gypsy moth caterpillar is no joke. The invasive species arrived in Ontario about 50 years ago and has been a periodic menace to both people and trees since the early 1980s. There are outbreaks every seven to 10 years, according to an Ontario government website, although this year’s outbreak follows one last year which caused nearly 590,000 hectares of defoliation, up from about 47,000 in 2019.
“They're kind of creepy to see and the other problem is that they eat a lot. They’re hungry, hungry caterpillars and they can take out huge areas of trees and bushes,” CTV science and technology specialist Dan Riskin told CTV’s Your Morning on Friday.
“Last year… the area of trees that lost all their leaves in Ontario was about the size of Prince Edward Island, so they do a significant dose of damage and it looks like their numbers are very high this year as well.”
To make matters worse, the hairs on their legs can also cause an allergic reaction in some people.
Their eggs will often live in the winter on the bark of trees, but it is in the spring and early summer when the larvae climb the trees to eat on foliage.
Like many successful invasive species, the gypsy moth caterpillar is adept at transporting itself to new feeding areas. One way it does this is by ‘ballooning’, or hanging off the end of a branch on a tiny thread and allowing the wind to carry it to a new area. They also use ground transportation, says Ruskin.
“These egg masses really are the trick. They leave those on trees but they also leave them on sometimes patio furniture sometimes under the bumper of a car and so it's pretty easy for them to move around,” he said.
In a summer where getting outside and into nature seems to be a victory, the arrival of the caterpillars instead now has many worrying how to deal with the infestation.
One option that many have tried is to wrap tree trunks in burlap bands, which can catch caterpillars as they move up and down the tree. Others have wrapped trees in sticky substances such as duct tape to trap the caterpillars.
Then again, there’s also the time-tested approach of chemical warfare.
“There are some interesting pesticides that are based on bacteria that make this species sick, but don't affect other species and are not harmful to humans that are quite exciting and so it may come down to spraying with these biological control methods, but that hasn't been effective yet and so that needs to ramp up,” said Riskin.
Thousands of people in Western Canada remain displaced from their homes as wildfires threaten their communities, triggering evacuation orders and alerts.
Eating enough healthy fats is great for brain and heart health, but new research has possibly provided even more evidence for adding them, particularly omega-3s, to your diet.
A Malahide Township resident is out more than $2 million following a romance scam.
Less than a week after two public sculptures featuring a livestream between Dublin, Ireland, and New York City debuted, 'inappropriate behaviour' in real-time interactions between people in the two cities has prompted a temporary shutdown.
More than 2,000 people forced to pack up and leave Fort Nelson, B.C., are trying to adjust to life as evacuees, and the constant concern about what is happening back home.
After a final frame that saw the visiting Vancouver Canucks claw their way back and tie the game late, a point shot by Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard with 38 seconds left (until what seemed like certain overtime) iced the 3-2 victory for Edmonton to knot the series.
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker railed against Pride month, working women, President Biden's leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and abortion during a commencement address at Benedictine College last weekend.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.