Last year here in Essex, and over a lot of the UK, there was a plague of horrid little hairy brown caterpillars which were causing some pretty bad problems with those who unsuspectingly came in contact with them. The troublesome little bleeders were the larvae of the Brown-tail moth and can cause havoc if you came in contact with them, by causing itchy rashes, sore throats and eye irritation especially to those who suffer from allergic reactions.
The larvae are small brown hairy critters which once touch easily dislodge their hairs which then can attach to the small pores in our skin and then cause an allergic reaction which can range from a mild itch to a strong burning sensation and even bring on an asthma attack to those who suffer.
They make cotton wool type ‘nests’ in hedgerow trees such as blackthorn and hawthorn as well as on scrub type plants such as bramble. These nests can hold multitudes of the wriggly little buggers and if you carefully, without coming in contact with them, watch you can see different size caterpillars within as well as larger specimens outside the nest area. I find them quite creepy to watch as they make my skin crawl.
I found the nest above a couple of days ago whilst walking the dogs at a local country park, CHERRY ORCHARD JUBILEE PARK, so thought i,d write this little piece to inform those who havn,t come across them before. Admire them from a distance but definitely don’t go touching them.
Stay safe everyone……………………
