Nature Note #104: Adventures in Pennsylvania: The Bag Worm Cometh!

For the past two weeks, I've been acclimatizing, getting to know the people, and learning my role for my job here in Horsham, Pennsylvania. As such, I've been looking around at what's similar and different about here to home. Earlier this week, I discovered these strange cocoons hanging from the tips of a spruce (Picea spp.) near the dining hall. I recognized them as bagworms, but admittedly, I know little about them. So after work I looked up some information on what species they were and their life cycle.


The pictures above show small, pointed cocoons about 2 inches in length, that are constructed from needles and silk, and hang from the tips of the conifer. The photo below shows that there were a lot of them on the end of the branches. There were probably up to 30 or more on the upper and middle branches of the spruce and by the looks of it, the tree wasn't looking so hot. I visited PennState's College of Agricultural Sciences entomology page and found a species account for the bag worms I'd seen. Their scientific name is Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis and they prey mainly on the needles of conifers. They're considered pests by many people as they eat conifers bare and are usually dispatched by using an insecticide.

Despite their apparent pestliness (I know it's not a word, but whatever), I quite liked how they dangled from the ends, barely noticeable except to those who would actually take a closer look. I'm glad I did and I learned something new as well. Now if I could only find a Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa)...

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