Minnesota’s battle against the gypsy moth is ready to resume. The state’s Department of Agriculture is about to set 23,000 traps for the moths across the eastern border of Minnesota to note where new outbreaks of the invasive pest are occurring.
Minnesota Public Radio has the story HERE.
In Northeastern Minnesota, where the European native has already established footholds, the Department of Agriculture plans to apply the pesticide BTK to combat infestations near Two Harbors, Cramer, and Finland.
KDLH, Channel 3, in Duluth has the full story HERE.
A pest imported from Europe in the 1860s, gypsy moths are voracious eaters that can defoliate entire trees. Oaks and aspens are especially susceptible to the insect which has few North American predators. Repeated defoliation of these trees by the pests can lead to the death of the tree.
Learn more about the state’s gypsy moth efforts HERE.