PORTLAND, Maine — An invasive moth that can damage hardwood and fruit trees has been spreading in Maine.
State officials are asking residents to be on the lookout for winter moths, which have spread into Maine from southern New England, where they have caused widespread damage.
The moth was first detected along the Maine coast in 2006 and has been spotted in the past year in Harpswell and Vinalhaven.
The Maine Sunday Telegram says state officials have reported 13 sightings of moths in Cape Elizabeth, as well as scattered reports from Scarborough, South Portland, Portland, Falmouth, Woolwich, Westport Island and Brunswick.
Residents are being asked to keep an eye out for the moths, which are likely to be flying in swarms this time of year, and capture some specimens if they can.
How about a picture? Do they look like the normal moths that always around? Or do they have a distinct trait to know they are not the normal moths? All information that would be helpful in identifying these moths.
http://www.northeastnursery.com/garden/whatsnew_helpfulhints_wintermoth.html
I saw to small white ones yesterday in Rockland., what do they look like and who do we contact.
They are a small light colored moth. I have seen tons of they fling around when I am on my way home from work at about 4:45. Bath is loaded with them. The PPH has a picture.
That’s not what you want to hear.
Can there be any doubt now that global warming is really happening? If these mutant moths are not caused by our addiction to fossil fuels, what other explanation can there be? It’s time for a substantive carbon tax and the annihilation of big oil and big coal.
I really think warming is kicking into high gear as well, but I am not sure winter moths can be blamed on warming.
My experience says winter moths do pretty well in the cold.
Winter moths are caused by big box stores,
Winter moths have come on strong in a major, major way in the Boston suburbs. Apple and blueberry farmers have been especially hard hit as the moth eggs hatch in the spring and quickly burrow into leaf buds, and then eat the bud from the inside out where even chemical sprays are ineffective. If the buds open quickly (that is, if the weather stays relatively warm once bud swell starts and there aren’t any early warm spells to swell the buds too early), damage isn’t all that bad, but most years, flower buds especially, get destroyed.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts started growing and releasing a certain parasitic wasp known to prey on winter moths – a wasp that has had good success keeping winter moth numbers in check in Washington State and Nova Scotia, two places that initially suffered severe moth damage. It took almost a decade for wasp numbers to grow to a point where they effectively controlled moths in those two places if I correctly recall what I have read. As of yet, MA has only been releasing small numbers of wasps for two or three years I believe. Hopefully, in another few years, MA will see some improvement. As it was, in some wooded areas southwest of Boston last week, the moths looked like snow falling out after dark. (BTW, only the male moths fly. The females have undeveloped wings, useless for flying. Instead, the females crawl up out of the soil and up a tree truck where they release a pheromone to attract males.)
Maine would do well to accept the inevitability of winter moths spreading nearly statewide and start preparing a bio-rational response using moth predator releases as well.
Someone please wake up the frogs !
We need to spray sothern Maine right off, Cape Elizabeth need a double dose
Picture….hello!