A review of the 2009 Supplemental Gypsy Moth
Program The Frederick County Gypsy Moth task force met during the fall of 2008 and determined that a supplemental gypsy moth suppression program would again be needed in 2009 given the expected levels of infestation throughout the county. Parkton Woodland Services was once again retained to provide administrative support and, the task force submitted bid requests to numerous spray contractors. Helicopter Applicators provided the successful bid and were chosen as the spray contractor. To publicize this program the Task Force sent out individual mailings to previous year’s participants, submitted articles to local newspapers, and held a gypsy moth informational meeting at the C. Burr Artz Library in Frederick City on December 4, 2008. The failing economy of 2008 – 2009 had a fairly significant impact on this program. Given budget constraints Frederick County was unable to offer monetary assistance to provide cost sharing. In addition, the State of Maryland had to drop some of their anticipated spray blocks due to reduced funding levels thereby increasing participation in the supplemental program in some cases. In addition, many private individuals cited poor economic conditions as reason for not participating in the 2009 program. Spraying for the
Supplemental Program began on May 12, and concluded on June 1, 2009. In total,
nearly 300 landowners participated in this program treating some 5,400 acres.
All of these properties were sprayed with the insecticide Confirm at 3.5
oz/acre. The spring and summer of 2009 was characterized by cool, rainy
weather. These environmental conditions benefit the naturally occurring virus
and fungus that suppress gypsy moth numbers. The result of the public and
private spray programs along with the prevailing climatic conditions is that
that gypsy moth populations had declined significantly without causing much
defoliation. These ground observations were confirmed after The Maryland Department of Agriculture, Forest Pest Management Section conducted its summer flight to determine levels of defoliation and noted no significant defoliation in any section of the county. In addition, the Forest Pest Management Section is in the midst of their gypsy moth egg mass surveys and reports that no significant populations exist to warrant developing a spray block in 2010. This survey is not yet complete so this might change. For now it appears that the gypsy moth populations have crashed and it looks like no significant spaying will be necessary in 2010 or the foreseeable future. Special thanks go out to those private citizens who assisted with this effort especially members of the Gypsy Moth Task force many of which spent significant time and effort on this project with no monetary gain. Also thanks go out to the local jurisdictions who assisted with this program especially Frederick County, legislators who helped acquire diminishing funds for this work, and those individuals in the MD Department of Agriculture, MD Department of Natural Resources, Parkton Woodland Services, and Helicopter Applicators that assisted with the spray effort. Mike
Kay Maryland plans spraying to combat gypsy moth damage The Associated Press The Maryland Department of Agriculture says it is beginning an aerial spraying program to combat gypsy moth caterpillars that will total 33,000 acres across the state. The forest pests defoliated about 19,000 acres of trees last year. Agriculture Secretary Roger Richardson said Thursday that this year's campaign will focus largely on central and western Maryland, including more than 11,000 acres in Frederick County and about 7,200 in Washington County. The cyclical infestations are on a downswing. Defoliation damage last peaked in 2007 at 68,000 acres statewide.  Gypsy moth egg masses (photo by Mike West)  Gypsy moth stripped oak trees against the setting sun, Kelbaugh Road. (photo by Mike West) In 2008, gypsy moth infestations in many forested areas of Frederick
County were severe enough to potentially defoliate thousands of acres
of forest. High tree mortality can result from gypsy moth defoliation
two or more years in a row or when other stresses to the forests are
present such as drought. In 2008, thousands of acres of Frederick
Forest are expected to be defoliated, unless treated. With an estimated
one million acres devastation since 1980 state lawmakers have been
studying the problem. "It literally looks like a war zone once they
come through," said American Joe Miedusiewski, a lobbyist for the Maryland Arborist Association (Washington Post, Moths Munch Trees, 3/21/2008).
Gypsy moths, native to parts of Europe, Asia and Africa, were brought to Massachusetts for a breeding experiment to produce a more robust silk worm. After their accidental release in the United States in the 1860’s they have proliferated in the absence of the natural controls present in their native habitat. Gypsy moth larvae (caterpillars) have voracious appetites and thrive on the hardwood forests of our area, with oaks being their preferred diet.  Gypsy Moth Task Force) sprayed the insect growth regulator "Confirm" over 8,800 acres of Frederick County forest land. In addition, the Maryland Department of Agriculture sprayed _(from Mike Kay)________ acres of public and private land with Bacillus Thurengensis and Dimilin. The private landowners are reporting close to 100% effectiveness of the Confirm spray. Below are some reference Web sites related to Gypsy Moth concerns: Gypsy Moth in North America |
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Gypsy Moth |