PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) - Experts say heavy rain has ended Rhode Island’s gypsy caterpillar infestation.
University of Rhode Island research associate Heather Faubert tells WJAR-TV (https://bit.ly/2tpioZx ) that rain activated an invisible Japanese fungus that kills the caterpillars. Faubert says the insects have virtually no other natural enemies aside from the fungus.
According to Faubert, more than half of Rhode Island forests were defoliated last year by gypsy moth caterpillars. The gypsy moth caterpillar infestation last year was one of the largest in the region since the 1980s.
Faubert predicts the gypsy moth population won’t rise next year.
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Information from: WJAR-TV, https://www.turnto10.com
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