Pine processionary moth caterpillars are starting to descend from their tree nests during the daytime in some forested areas of the Valencia region.
UK government agency, Forest Research (FR) explains that the caterpillars can be ‘a threat to the health of pine and some other conifer tree species, as well as a hazard to human and animal health’.
The FR notes that the caterpillars get their name from the distinctive habit of moving about in nose-to-tail processions ‘on the trees or on the ground beneath the trees in winter and early spring’.
Full report in Friday’s Costa Blanca News