Webs of intrigue...

[trehopr1]

During the late spring and early summer here in the Great Lakes region of the U.S. strange looking "webbed" enclaves seemingly begin to appear randomly on trees in the plant family Rosaceae, particularly cherry (Prunus) and apple (Malus). To the uninformed these are sometimes thought of as "spider nests"; as I have been told. However, most people simply have no idea what they are and they are not about to find out.
Well, what we have here are the silken "tents" or communal nests of the Eastern tent caterpillar (Malacosoma americanum). It is a social species which forms these strange apparitions on fruit trees. The moths oviposit almost exclusively on cherry and apple trees which is why they simply are not seen everywhere. Generally, one has to go to areas with more rural settings to find them.
They only seem to be around for about a 3 week period or so and then the caterpillars start radiating out from their silken enclave to seek out places to pupate. The bottom photograph shows a close-up of one of these such nests. The caterpillars by my estimate were already at about the 3rd instar stage. Fascinating stuff...

[trehopr1]

Today with net in hand I went out looking for some butterflies. While I was certain to see some hibernators I was hoping for some "spring" butterfly sightings (if not captures). As I proceeded along a hiking trail/bike path near my home I spied several fruit trees already sporting the years first silken enclaves of our native Eastern Tent caterpillar (Malocosoma americanum). This species belongs to the family Lasiocampidae of which there are 6 species here in North America.

Upon, closer inspection of the nested sites I could see; I was quite surprised at how large already the larvae were. My guess is that they were at least 3rd instar. Below, I have posted a small tree which had at least 5 small nested sites in it. I'm sure the tree will be near naked of leaves in a couple weeks or so...





What I found a bit odd was that the larvae on this nest were congregated on the exterior of their silken enclave.
Perhaps, they were trying to warm themselves in the intermittent periods when the sun shined through the clouds.

Still, it is very nice to see spring and LIFE slowly returning to our region of the world. Six months of winter season
is just so debilitating.