Campers at Pigeon Lake Provincial Park, located about an hour southwest of Edmonton, are dealing with an influx of visitors this week.
A huge number of forest tent caterpillars have invaded the campground, munching on leaves as they go.
The furry visitors are everywhere — on picnic tables, in fire pits and on the trees, stripping some branches bare.
“They’re not bad if there’s a few of them but anything in large amount of numbers is a little eerie,” said camper Meghan Bodker.
“We’ve been doing our eating inside the trailer,” added camper Robin King.
Alberta Parks told Global News that it’s not an infestation, it’s a seasonal guest experiencing a cyclical boom that happens every 10-12 years.
They have a life cycle of four to six weeks before they build cocoons, or tents, and eventually become moths.
The “very hungry caterpillars” are native to Alberta and provide an abundant food source for birds and other wildlife.
The campground host at Pigeon Lake said he’s getting complaints about them, but they’re mainly just a nuisance.
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“The campground host at Pigeon Lake said he’s getting complaints”.
What’s the campground host going to do?
Evict them?
People are such whiners.
Outbreaks occur roughly every 7–12+ years and can last 2–3 (sometimes up to 5) years in an area before declining. Even after 3 years trees are weakened to the point of death. Dry dead trees create a fire hazard. An effective non-chemical spray can be applied by airplane that can save the trees but probably won’t because of low IQ people afraid of anything sprayed by humans.