Don't panic!

Don’t panic! The aliens have not landed (well, not that we know of, anyway)!

The ‘cobwebs’ you can see on many Bird Cherry trees (prunus padus) along the Speyside Way are not the work of an invasion of giant spiders, only the result of activity by a relatively common moth, the Bird Cherry Ermine (Yponomeuta evonymella)

On hatching, the caterpillars of this moth can quite quickly spin a silk ‘tent’ over the twigs and branches where they can feed on the leaves in safety, protected from birds and parasitic ichneumon wasps by their surrounding shield.

During a major infestation of ermine moth caterpillars, whole bird cherry trees can be completely enveloped in this silken stocking and become totally defoliated. These outbreaks are sporadic, however, and while the trees may appear leafless and lifeless immediately afterwards, they tend to recover in subsequent years.

On Speyside, this is the third attack we have had in successive years, and some of our bird cherries are looking a bit sorry for themselves.

We will not, however, be sending out the Rangers to clean the trees, as has been suggested to us!