Subject: Worms
Location: Denison tx
April 6, 2015 5:34 pm
We have zillions of little worms hanging from Cobb webs out of the tree and the porches. Really everywhere. What r they and what can we do about them?
Signature: Michelle
Dear Michelle,
In the past, we have gotten reports of Oak Leafroller Caterpillars, Argyrotaenia quercifoliana, hanging from trees, but a closeup of your caterpillars indicates they are a different species in the Spanworm or Inchworm family Geometridae. We will research this and try to come up with a species identification for you.
They are killing my trees I think and I’m not sure what to do. Parts of my trees are brown where they were budding leaves last week
Hi again Michelle,
One tree image you provided appears to be a freshly planted Apple Tree. Please provide information on the tree. What is it? When was it planted? Is this the only place you are finding the caterpillars? It is possible the eggs were on the tree when it was purchased and now that all the young leaves have been eaten, the caterpillars are on the move searching for more food. If their diet is limited to the leaves of apple trees, they will starve and you will no longer have the caterpillars, and unless the tree is really unhealthy, new leaves will sprout. We just noticed you also attached an image of a large tree. What kind of tree is it? Are the caterpillars on all of your trees or only on selected trees? The large tree should have no trouble resprouting if it is an otherwise healthy tree. Birds and other insectivore predators should help to keep the numbers of caterpillars in check.
