Fewer oak processionary caterpillars are reported this year than last year. In the middle of the animal’s nuisance period, nature site Nature Today sees half as many reports as last year. However, there are major regional differences: in some places more nuisance is reported.
Nature Today writes about a inventory of the nuisance which was reported by municipalities and volunteers to the Knowledge Center Oak processionary caterpillar. In peak year 2019, the caterpillars were still found in more than half of the oaks that had not been treated. Last year that had fallen to 30 percent, this year only 17 percent is reported.
According to the site, there are major regional differences. Half of the municipalities report that the nuisance has decreased, but a quarter see an increase in the problems. In more than one in five municipalities, the pest is still found in more than half of the oak trees.
According to Nature Today, the decrease in nuisance is partly due to the cold spring, which caused the population to grow less explosively than in previous years. In addition, preventive measures taken by municipalities seem to work: fewer nests were found and smaller in size in the 95,000 oaks that were sprayed with a bacterial preparation.
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