Home and Garden IPM from Cooperative Extension

Eastern Tent Caterpillars

The silken/webbed nests spun by Eastern Tent Caterpillars are starting to be seen in trees now (early May).  These caterpillars feed on apple, peach, plum, crabapple and cherry trees and build distinctive nests in the forks of the branches. Feel free to review our fact sheet on these caterpillars for more information, including some things you can do to combat them (and how they differ from Forest Tent Caterpillars).

Additional Photos:

Image Description:

Image Description: an EasternTentCaterpillar and an example of the communal nests they make in trees

Image Description: Eastern Tent Caterpillar - egg masses