Hungry caterpillars causing 'serious' damage to Okanagan crops

For the second year in a row, farmers in the north Okanagan are dealing with destructive caterpillars that are eating crops like alfalfa, asparagus and corn.

The pesky caterpillars are Western Yellowstriped Armyworms, and until last year, they had never been reported in B.C.'s Interior.

"It started in one place but now it seems like everybody seems to have them," said Joseph Bifano, owner of Nata Farms. "They're very aggressive and it's just, there's like a multitude of them."

Researchers have been working to figure out how the armyworms came to the Okanagan since they were first spotted in Enderby in 2018. Now, they're also spreading in Armstrong and the Spallumcheen area. They're native to most of North and South America, though last year was the first time this particular species was recorded in B.C.'s Interior. 

"We are still learning more about this pest so that we'll know when they are going to show up," entomologist Susanna Acheampong told Radio West host Sarah Penton.  

Acheampong expects the worms will be a problem for farmers into October, because that's how long they stuck around last year.

"This is really a serious one," she said.

Researchers have been setting up traps to catch the worms and kill them, but also so they can be sent to an expert in Ontario who can try to learn more about why they've suddenly popped up in B.C.

"Hopefully we'll get some answers at the end of this season," Acheampong said.

In the meantime, some farmers are cutting their crops early to reduce the amount of damage the armyworms can do. Some farmers are resorting to using pesticides to protect their crops.

"We had a cornfield ... they got into that was just starting to grow," Bifano said.

"We had that spray, and we don't like using pesticides ever, but we had no option because they eat the corn as fast as it was coming out of the ground — we wouldn't have any crops left. So we had to spray the field so the corn could grow."