NASHVILLE, Tenn. – To date, there are no gypsy moth populations in Tennessee. Despite no sightings of this insect invader in the Volunteer State, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s Division of Forestry is scaling up efforts to prevent damage by the moth as it nears the northeast corner of the state.

On Jan. 12, the division began accepting bids to trap the tree pests in Johnson, Carter, Sullivan, Washington and Unicoi Counties. The state is seeking contractors who wish to submit a bid for placement, inspection and removal of gypsy moth traps. Bids are for each of those five counties individually.

“Our goal is to keep the gypsy moth out of Tennessee,” said State Forester David Arnold. “We do that by placing traps to monitor high-risk areas. The destructive pest can feed on many tree species and can easily defoliate trees across acres of forest.”

Bids from contractors will be accepted via email only until 4 p.m. on Jan. 31. Contact Gypsy Moth Coordinator Hannah Hollowell at 615-837-5439 with any questions.

“Once the trees are weakened, it leaves them vulnerable to diseases and other pests that can eventually kill them,” Arnold said.

To slow the moth’s range and prevent its penetration into the state, Tennessee participates in the USDA’s Slow the Spread program. The purpose of the program is to actively monitor and eradicate populations before they establish. The five counties mentioned are on the advancing edge of the pest’s range. Roughly 14,000 orange and green Delta traps will be installed statewide. The traps will be placed on a grid-like pattern that covers rural and urban environments.

Kentucky is taking similar action against the gypsy moth again this year. In 2020, traps were placed in 93 counties across the state. Five positive traps were found in five counties. Precautions were made again last year with similar results.

“We hired surveyors to survey wooded areas across all of Kentucky according to national protocol,” said Janet Lensing, state survey coordinator and member of University of Kentucky’s Department of Entomology. “These triangular traps are baited with a synthetic female sex pheromone to attract and capture male gypsy moths.”

Kentucky also participates in the Slow the Spread program. Kentucky has trapped for gypsy moths since 1983.

“Thus far, our extensive monitoring program and eradication techniques have prevented this damaging pest from becoming established in Kentucky,” Lensing said. For more information about helping with gypsy moth surveys, contact Lensing at 859-257-5838.

While gypsy moths are not established in Kentucky, they have been found every year in Kentucky. They have established themselves in Ohio, Indiana, Virginia and West Virginia.

From 2000-2002, West Virginia experience record defoliations that totaled more than 1 million acres.

In Indiana, the moth has become established in eight northern counties: Steuben, Porter, LaPorte, St. Joseph, Elkhart, Lagrange, Noble and DeKalb. It first appeared in the state in Steuben County in 1998.

“Where gypsy moth has already been established in Indiana, environmentally safe tools that foster and conserve the natural enemies of gypsy moths will be used to maintain the appearance of urban forests and the health of woodland ecosystems,” says Cliff Sadof, professor of entomology at Purdue University. “The Indiana Department of Natural Resources will continue the trapping program it began in 1973.”

Ohio has been hit hard by the gypsy moth as 51 of Ohio’s 88 counties have seen the pest become established. The first adult male moth was trapped in Ohio in 1971 in Ashtabula County, and the first major defoliation occurred in 1990.

As the moth has made its way westward, it has been spotted in eight counties in Illinois: Lake, McHenry, Cook, DuPage, Will, Kane, Kendall and LaSalle. A feel-good story in the gypsy moth saga in this state is there were no moth treatments in 2021. In 2020, there were 11,000 gypsy moth survey traps set.

Gypsy moths are not native to the United States. Since their accidental introduction to Massachusetts in 1869, they have spread steadily westward at a rate of roughly 10 miles per year.

These insects are so destructive because the caterpillars can feed on more than 500 trees and shrubs. Oaks are a preferred host while apple, sweetgum, basswood, gray and white birch, poplar, willow and hawthorn are also favored. Older instars can feed on hemlock, pine and spruce.

Caterpillars are recognizable since they have five pairs of blue dots and six pairs of red dots on their back and are very hairy.

Adult female moths are large, white and flightless while males are smaller, brown in color and can fly. Natural dispersal occurs over short distances, when larvae send out silken strands that allow them to be blown by the wind. However, gypsy moths have been able to move long distances on outdoor household articles such as cars and recreational vehicles, firewood and household goods. Females often lay egg masses on such articles which are then transported by people.