Monday, April 28, 2014

The Stuff Of Nightmares

Last week The Pony and I marveled at the beauty of a flowering tree just outside the end door of Newmentia. Okay. I marveled at it. The Pony said, I believe, "Uh huh," as he tromped by loaded down like a pack mule. We walk out that way every day, and now that spring has sprung, April is bustin' out all over. This tree has some gorgeous pinky-white blooms all over it. Thick with them. Gorgeous. Until today.

Here is the sight that greeted us upon exit:


Yes. We have no pinky-white bloomy flowers. But that's not the shocking part. Did you notice, perhaps, the webby pod-looking bundles in the forks of the limbs? EEEEK! Something's gonna hatch there! But you don't yet realize the horror. I do. I will have nightmares tonight. Not like the ones last night, where I was grocery shopping with my little black bear cub, and some well-meaning busybody asked if I wanted help putting him on the rack at the bottom of my cart while I was checking out. No, thank you. My little black bear cub is free to roam the aisles as he chooses. It's free grocery store, you know. So mind your own business.

My research, assisted by my BFF Google, led me to common pests in Missouri, and the certain knowledge that the earliest intruder to assault the trees is the Eastern Tent Caterpillar. Uh huh. Guess what's inside those webby pod-looking bundles. Not spiders. Great big gobs of squirmy wormy caterpillars!


Yeah. I heard you scream. They come out and eat the new leaves, then retreat to their webs. Later in the summer, they will turn into moths and breed more of themselves.

Sweet dreams.

at

5 comments:

  1. Sioux RoslawskiApril 28, 2014 at 8:50 PM

    Hey, do goats like to eat caterpillars? (Don't they eat everything?)

    Here's an idea: Have Farmer H. put the nest/tent/disgusting soon-to-be-writhing blob into a box. Seal up the box. Take the box to the auction. Advertise it in a way that the bidders will not be able to resist.

    I'm sure you can think of some labels/descriptions for the box...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hillbilly MomApril 29, 2014 at 6:45 PM

    Sioux,
    I imagine goats would love to eat caterpillars wrapped in lilac leaves, on a skewer of lilac limb, sprinkled with lilac florets.

    GRAB BOX

    That's all he'd need to put on the side. People will buy anything, supposing there's an undiscovered treasure inside.

    He might add: "over 100 pieces inside"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sioux RoslawskiApril 29, 2014 at 8:08 PM

    How about "over 100 MOVING pieces"?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Kathy's KlotheslineApril 29, 2014 at 8:23 PM

    I have heard them called "bag worms". When I see them in one of my trees, I put a glove on and grab the wad of them, toss them on the gravel and squish them under the sole of my rubber shoes. They do not reproduce here.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hillbilly MomApril 29, 2014 at 10:07 PM

    Sioux,
    I think you are an auction seller, Madam!

    ****
    Kathy,
    Looks like others call them that, too. But the real bagworms don't come out until later in the year. Here's a link. Hope you're not squeamish!

    http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/web-worms-bag-worms-and-easter-61087

    ReplyDelete