Durban - Experts say it would be best to allow nature to take its course regarding the caterpillar infestation in Morningside.
They agreed with the eThekwini Municipality that the issue will come to an end when the caterpillars pupate and emerge as moths.
Residents told The Mercury this week that the caterpillar infestation was causing rashes, sores and other ailments.
Municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said they have sent teams on different occasions to investigate, describing the infestation as a seasonal occurrence that is a part of nature.
He said the caterpillars will pupate into moths and eventually fly away.
Professor Terry Olckers from the College of Agriculture, Engineering and Science at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), said after viewing images of the caterpillars, he agreed with the municipality that the caterpillars will emerge as moths.
“It is not possible to positively identify the caterpillar from the image provided, but it certainly belongs to the same family (Lasiocampidae: lappet moths). Caterpillars tend to feed on a range of host plants and can be a nuisance due to their long irritating hairs, which can cause allergic reactions when they come in contact with human skin, but this is not life-threatening.”
Olckers said besides warning the public to not handle the caterpillars (or any other such species that have similar long hairs), the best thing to do was to let nature take its course.
“Besides the temporary use of insecticides, there is not much that can be done. There will be predatory and parasitic insects that attack them, but these cannot be applied in an inundative manner. The population tends to ‘boom and bust’, sometimes reaching outbreak levels, then dispersing.”
Dr David Glassom, a lecturer in the School of Life Sciences at UKZN, said the caterpillars do not need to be sprayed or killed.
“As far as I know, the species is Bombycomorpha bifascia. They occur naturally in the area. All caterpillars are larvae of moths or butterflies.”
Glassom said he suspects that if they were not disturbed, they would not sting anyone. “In this case the caterpillars are social, but after a couple of months will disperse to make cocoons and eventually emerge as moths.”
Ward 27 councillor in Morningside, Ernest Smith, said he has received multiple complaints about the caterpillar infestation which he has raised with the city’s Parks Department to try to forge a way forward.
“It seems the caterpillars have nested on a number of trees along Avondale Road and have resulted in a number of residents being stung, causing extreme itching.
“Unfortunately, this issue is also located in a number of other streets across the municipality such as Percy Osborne Road and because these creatures move, they tend to find their way into private residences.”
Smith said if they are sprayed it may also impact other animals like birds, reptiles and other insects that feed on them.