Hobbies And Interests
Spread of the Moth
The movement of commercial materials contaminated by gypsy moth eggs has helped speed up the gypsy moth invasion. The moths would otherwise expand their range slowly because only the male moth can fly. After hatching from the egg, the larvae climb trees seeking light and leaving a trail of silk spun from glands in their heads. Once they reach the outer branches of the tree, they lower themselves toward the ground on silk lines that are easily broken. The wind catches the silk strands and transports the moth caterpillar to a new location. The caterpillar may climb a tree in the new location and be windblown to another new location several times.
Food
The gypsy moth larvae feed on more than just tree leaves. They can live on the plants that grow under their favorite trees if they hatched before the tree itself opens its leaves. The youngest moth larvae eat the interior of the leaf while older caterpillars eat the leaf edges. The gypsy moth caterpillar will eat more than 500 varieties of plants including agriculturally important crops, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. The moths prefer apples, birches, poplars and willows as well as basswood, alder and hawthorn oak. The caterpillar will also eat cherry, cottonwood, elm, maples and hickory along with larches hemlock, pines and spruces.
Stages of Growth
The gypsy moth is born as a larva from an egg mass laid by its mother. As it grows, it sheds its skin. The female sheds its skin six times, but the male only sheds its skin five times. In the first weeks of July, the larvae has grown large enough and is ready to spin a cocoon and go through its first changes. The male pupates first as it doesn't shed its skin as many times as the female. First the larvae becomes a pupae living within its reddish-brown cocoon. After several weeks, the pupae emerges from the cocoon as a winged moth.
Enemies
Parasites of the gypsy moth include several species of wasps. Some of the wasps parasitize the eggs while others attack the small larvae. One species of wasp parasitize the pupae but by that time, the trees have already lost most of their leaves. Three species of flies that parasitize the moth. Woodland mammals that eat the gypsy moth larvae include mice, shrews, voles, squirrels and chipmunks. In addition, some birds, such as nuthatches, chickadees, orioles, jays and robins eat the gypsy moth. Some beetles, spiders, ants and daddy longlegs also eat both the moth and the caterpillar.