Now through spring, you can help protect local trees by looking for and destroying spongy moth egg masses. Egg masses appear as fuzzy, brown patches, and can be found on trees, firewood, lawn furniture, and other hard surfaces. Each egg mass contains 600-700 eggs. To get rid of them, you can scrape them off into hot, soapy water.
Spongy moths are non-native but naturalized, meaning that over time, they have become a functional part of New York’s ecosystem. When spongy moth outbreaks occur, they are ended by natural causes such as predators and diseases. Removing their egg masses is not a cure for spongy moth infestations, but it can help reduce damage to local trees next year.
