Here's an ally in fight against gypsy moths

Annley Perez believes her Palatine Township neighborhood is suffering a case of the gypsy moths, but she doesn't know where to turn for either confirmation or assistance.

For the most part, she and the neighbors she knows have been handling the problem by scraping the little black caterpillars off tree trunks and the sides of their houses and then sweeping them up.

But she's seen what appear to be private tree-care companies spraying for the insects at other homes in Forest Estates, a heavily wooded area tucked between Schaumburg and Palatine off Plum Grove Road.

Jim Cavanaugh, gypsy moth coordinator for the Illinois Department of Agriculture, said his office has been overwhelmed by calls for help from throughout the greater Chicago area as the gypsy moth problem spreads.

While it's not in the department's budget to spray everywhere gypsy moths are found, he said the University of Illinois Extension is helping out by both diagnosing the problem and offering advice to residents who believe they're dealing with the destructive caterpillars.

Cavanaugh said he's heard confirmation that gypsy moth larvae have been seen in Palatine Township but added that it's worthwhile for residents like Perez to check for sure that their caterpillars are gypsy moths.

"The first rule of pest control is to identify the pest," Cavanaugh said.

Residents can do this by bringing caterpillar samples to their nearest U of I Extension office for identification.

Horticulturist Sharon Yiesla of the Lake County extension office in Grayslake said it can be cost-effective for neighbors to band together to spray for gypsy moths.

She said the best time to do this is early in the spring, however, as today's caterpillars are already just a few weeks away from turning to adulthood, when their appetite for destruction will end.

As gypsy moths don't destroy trees nearly as quickly as pests like the emerald ash borer, seeing the caterpillars this year can at least serve as a heads-up to do early spraying next year, she said.

This fall, residents who suspect an infestation might also want to look for the thumb-sized, buff-colored egg masses the adults will lay on tree trunks. Those eggs can be scraped off, and disposing of even one mass will rid the environment of hundreds of caterpillars next spring, Yiesla said.

Batting gypsy moths

If you think you have a gypsy moth infestation, you can bring a caterpillar sample to one of the following U of I Extension office to have it identified. The offices will also provide help for fighting infestation:

• Grayslake: (847) 223-8627

• Joliet: (815) 727-9296

• Mount Prospect: (847) 437-6449

• Naperville: (630) 955-1123

• Rolling Meadows: (847) 818-2901

• St. Charles: (630) 584-6166

• Woodstock: (815) 338-3737