Class: Insects
Size: 35 to 60mm (wingspan)
Weight: Variable
Age: Unknown
Appearance: White-yellowish-brownish
Food: Caterpillars: Deciduous trees and other plants (about 100 plant species!)
Distribution: Europe except extreme north, North Africa, Asia to China, North America
Original location: Unknown
Habitat: Deciduous forests, gardens, parks
Threatened with extinction: No

• Gypsy moths are widespread in warmer regions of Europe and North Africa. This species is also found in the Central Asian mountains and Siberian forest areas. Gypsy moths have also been found in the Altai Mountains and in the Baikal region as far as Mongolia, China, South Korea and Japan. In the 19th century, the gypsy moth was introduced to Medford, Massachusetts, by the entomologist Étienne Léopold Trouvelot, and from there spread throughout the United States until the mid-20th century and is now a feared pest.
• The wings of the female are white to pale yellow with little visible serrated markings, which are still very distinct in newly hatched females. The abdomen is covered with tufts of hair (anus wool) and is very strong. The grey-brown wings of the males have slightly darker markings. They also have larger combed antennae.
• During the moth flight from June to August, the livelier males pursue the more sluggish females. Soon after mating, the females lay up to 2’000 eggs in piles on tree trunks, branches or walls. The brown eggs are covered by the female’s anal wool, giving the clutch a spongy appearance. Caterpillars hatch only in spring. Initially they are very gregarious, after a while they disperse and feed on the buds and leaves of deciduous trees. The caterpillars are black-grey with six blue or red tubercles and a tuft of erect hairs in each segment. The pupation takes place in early July in a light web. The moths hatch after 10 to14 days.
• The damage of the gypsy moth comes from the caterpillars, which advance into the treetops a few days after hatching. There they initially only eat holes in the young leaves. As they grow in age and size, they eat the leaves almost completely. Then the damage is visible from afar, and in the case of a large-scale infestation, the trees are sometimes completely defoliated. Besides fruit trees, oaks and hornbeams are particularly at risk. When the caterpillars stop feeding at the end of June, most trees can recover. Occasionally, however, oaks in particular die. If the oak forest is weakened by other diseases, pests or a drought, the entire stand can also die.