What do lophocampa argentata eat

June 6, at am. June 25, at am. Jenni says:. August 13, at am. August 13, at pm. June 4, at pm. June 5, at am. MartyGiles says:. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Exact matches only. Search in title. Search in content. Search in excerpt. Posted on June 29, by admin. Share this: Email Twitter Facebook. This entry was posted in Pests and Diseases. Bookmark the permalink. May 10, at pm. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. During May and June the mature larvae are often observed wandering on the ground as they seek out sheltered locations in which to spin cocoons and pupate.

Adults emerge from mid-July to mid-August. Females lay up to eggs in clusters along needles and twigs. Eggs hatch from mid August to mid-September, first- and second-instar larvae feed gregariously inside a loose 5- to cm long web during the fall. Feedback on this page. They make a nest of silk threads where they hang out with their siblings during the colder months. In spring they disperse and feed until mature, sometime in June. In June the caterpillars spin themselves a cocoon using their body hair mixed with silk threads.

Usually neither of these caterpillars do enough damage to warrant action however if the nests of tent caterpillars are unsightly you can either prune them out and dispose of them or apply a spray application of BTK on your trees, a naturally occurring bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis that is toxic to caterpillars when they eat it but perfectly safe for other insects and wildlife. You need to apply this when you first notice caterpillars actively eating, before they hit the pupate stage.