The tree killing gypsy moth is already established in a line from Rock, Dane, Sauk, Juneau and Adams Counties and points east. (See map)
DNR Gypsy Moth expert Mark Guthmiller says some twenty-thousand acres of trees were defoliated this season. Mostly in the northeast.
We can't get rid of them completely but next spring's damage can be minimized by locating the egg masses.
Guthmiller hopes the public will look for them and report it to county public works officials. The county or community can then ask the DNR for a supression spray effort in the spring.
The egg masses can be found on just about anything that's wood. They will be about an inch, inch and a half long. Fuzzy looking and a golden buff in color. Eggs left over from last year will be bleached white but each mass can contain five hundred to a thousand eggs.
There's a second effort on the western edge of the Gypsy Moth line to stop the spread of the tree destroying insects because once they settle in they're here for good.
AUDIO: Jim Dick reports ( 1:07 MP3 )
