Invasive insect pest defoliating trees all over Boston's south shore; Plymouth, MA

Winter Moths Return With Vengeance - As Seen On NewsCenter 5 Story - WCVB Boston:
POSTED: 1:58 pm EDT May 19, 2009
UPDATED: 5:51 pm EDT May 19, 2009
BOSTON -- After a quiet existence for the past three years, the winter moth caterpillar is back.
NewsCenter 5’s David Brown reported that the hungry caterpillars can kill thousands of local trees.
“A lot of it is a numbers game. There are so many winter moths within the canopy of the tree, and all those holes coalesce,” said Todd Caswell, of Natural Tree.
It's a numbers game that's become a losing battle for thousands of trees in eastern Massachusetts. The number of winter moth caterpillars have been down for the past three years in eastern Massachusetts, but this year, the caterpillars are defoliating and damaging many prized New England trees."