Senin, 30 April 2012

Unstoppable deadly invader: Relentless rise of the poisonous caterpillars

Unstoppable deadly invader: Relentless rise of the poisonous caterpillars

  • Each caterpillar is covered in 63,000 hairs which can trigger potentially lethal asthma attacks
  • Fears the insects could affect the Olympics if oak trees in East London suffer an infestation
  • Kew Gardens expert says 'you can slow them down but we will never find them all'

By Arthur Martin

PUBLISHED: 20:00 EST, 30 April 2012 | UPDATED: 20:52 EST, 30 April 2012


The potentially deadly exotic caterpillars invading Britain are unstoppable, an expert warned yesterday.

Oak processionary moths, which are highly toxic pests during their caterpillar stage, have spread into new areas of the country.

There are even fears the insects could affect the Olympics if oak trees in East London suffer an infestation.

Fears: The oak processionary moth caterpillar is highly toxic and have spread into new areas of the country

Fears: The oak processionary moth caterpillar is highly toxic and have spread into new areas of the country

If this happens, millions of spectators could come into contact with poisonous hairs on the caterpillars that contain powerful toxins.

Each caterpillar is covered in 63,000 of these hairs, which can trigger potentially lethal asthma attacks.

The bristles can blow off in the wind and cause painful skin and throat rashes, running eyes, vomiting, dizziness and fever if you come into contact with them.

Spreading: The oak processionary moth loses its toxicity once it has turned into a moth as seen here

Spreading: The oak processionary moth loses its toxicity once it has turned into a moth as seen here

Tony Kirkham, head of the arboretum at Kew Gardens, said the pest was resilient to bad weather and difficult to eradicate. ‘We use spray to keep them at bay but even the nest removals at Kew don’t totally control oak processionary moths,’ he said.

‘You can slow them down but we will never find them all. They will always keep increasing.’

The creatures can usually be spotted in oak trees, where they strip off the leaves before turning into moths.

Swarm: The oak processionary moth caterpillars have been found on trees at Kew Gardens in south west London

Swarm: The oak processionary moth caterpillars have been found on trees at Kew Gardens in south west London

They first appeared in Britain in 2006, after they were brought into London on a batch of oak trees imported from Holland.

Since then they have spread rapidly across the South East and have been spotted as far afield as Reading and Sheffield.

It is feared that the pest will be prevalent throughout the South East within five years.

In Belgium, the situation became so bad that the army was sent in to incinerate the caterpillars’ nests â€" but officials here have no such plans.

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