Norwich bulletin., 1914-03-13
ON THE TRAIL
 OF THE cATERPtLLARs,
Men in States Employ Looking for
 Gypsy and BroWntaiis.

An employe of the state was here on Thursday engaged in search for the gypsy moth and browntail moth and will remain until he has covered the territory assigned to his to look over, On Thursday he was out through Norwich Town. Bozrah and along the BargytoWn ledges.
 While the state is keeping an eye out for the browntail and the gypsy moths. it has also recently been inter esting the school children in destroy ing the nests of the tent caterpillars.
 What a pest these can become was recently described by a writer in the Boston Transcript, who described con ditions in Massachusetts,
 He wrote as follows:
 Shall the tent caterpillars spread their eossamer tents all over tho landscape and walk with scratChy, clinging toenails all over us next summer, as they did last? We may devoutly hope not. but unless we get after them they will. To be sure, they folded their tents-like the Arab toward autumn and silently stole away, but this was not to vacate; 1t was just for vacation and a nap. lnnumerable millions of them craWled into any bed they could find-we were lucky if 1t were not our own garments hem or our necks-spun & sort of X-ray un- bleached cotton nightdresS and slept but the nap was short. Before long they were up and at 1t again, refresh ed, with wings and busy planning next seasons work and next seasons crop of caterpillars. The invasion was over with the summer, but the army sleeps on it's arms. so to speak. ready to invade again with the first coming of new leaves next spring. Last sum mer was the high water mark of 6 ture which started here in eastern Massachusetts two summers ago. It may be that the tide will fall suddenly by next year. and maybe not It all depends on many things.
 Pest from Earliest Times.
 The tent caterpillar has been a troublesome pest from the earliest times. Probably the Pilgrim fathers themselves knew the insect and its depredations. At any rate, the early settlers called the years 1916 and 1649 caterpillar years because of the enor- nous numbers of these insects on the wild cherry trees. The wild cherry Is no doubt the food which the tent cat erpillars have preferred since long be- fore the white man appeared in this country. With the coming of the ap- pie tree, the insects transferred their affections in part. Now they like young apple leaves. If neither tree Is avail able the insects eat plum. peach, pear, rose and other members of the rose family. They also sparingly attack many forest trees. such as willow, maple, elm or poplar.
 The fruit growers use various meth ods in the control of this insect. One spring with torches. This is effective so far as the caterpillars are concern ed if done at the right time. The in sects are gregarious and for shelter spin this gossamer nest of theirs and at night or in dull weather keep in or 2 On cIyTo hrfo< aff however, they are out feeding, and to l burn their nests then is to destroy
 their homes but not themselves On a I dull day or at nightfall is the time to i get them in this way.
 Chckadees and Nuthatehes. Of course, the best control which we 1 have for insects comes with insect eating birds. Especially is this true I of the tent caterpillar. for the grea; l number of brown moths produced last
 August and September exposed the 1 eggs which are to produce the cater 1 pillars of next year in convenient punches on the twig tips. That is es- l matches, woodpeckers and other winter l birds that like insect eggs. Severa i hundred of these caterpillar eggs ar, ! laid in one bunch and make a. nics mouthfu1 for a chickadee. It has beer l estimated that on a good winters daN
 a hungry chickadee will devour from ! six to eight thousand of these eggs 1 Therefore, if we could have chickadee. 1 enough, the tent caterpi1lars' tent! ] would, in the main. stay folded; but il 1 suburban communities and well settled l regions there are not enough of thu l intect- eating birds to keep down tn pests. Therefore, we must depend ol other things.
 l School Children.
 l In my town they are supplying tn