Worried about moth eggs in your Christmas tree? What to do after they were detected on some in Thunder Bay
Olivia Levesque | CBC News | Posted: December 8, 2022 10:00 AM | Last Updated: December 8, 2022
Spongy moth is a pest because it causes defoliation, not a huge concern for Christmas trees
After a chaotic scene involving temporary shutdowns, and federal inspectors looking for moth egg masses, a Christmas tree seller in Thunder Bay, Ont., has restocked with locally-grown trees, ready to head into living rooms across the city.
George's Market and Celebrations was one of at least two Christmas tree lots temporarily shut down last week by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency due to the detection of the LDD moth egg masses.
The LDD moth, which is also known as the spongy moth, is a regulated pest in Canada — and they're certainly not a desired Christmas tree ornament. They were shipped across Canada from a nursery in the south where the moths have been breeding.
About 400 trees were removed from the George's Market lot during the inspection, but it has been restocked with fresh balsam fir and spruce trees grown and cut around Thunder Bay, explained owner Danny Thompson.
"We've pivoted right away to bringing in some local Christmas trees," he said. "They're fresh cut, just brought in a couple days ago."
Thompson's family has been selling Christmas trees since 1961, starting with Thompson's mom and dad and now continuing down to his kids. They're also donating a portion of the proceeds of the tree sales to the Dayna Elizabeth Karle Foundation, and through this process, customers have been supportive, he said.
"This has never happened, not to us anyways in over 60 years," Thompson said. "So it's a first, it's a learning experience for all of us."
Inspections like these are standard protocol for Christmas trees, which are often shipped from areas regulated for pests to areas outside of their regulated areas, a spokesperson for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said.
"These pests can be very harmful to the Canadian forestry industry and impact Canada's ability to export forest products if pests such as the spongy moth become established in a non-regulated area," said the agency spokesperson.
The agency said the concern is around controlling any infested material, adding that inspectors are following up with retailers and nurseries in Thunder Bay and across Canada who have received shipment of trees to determine the extent of the issue and next steps.
Here's what to look for on your tree
The presence of these egg masses on Christmas trees is upsetting but not surprising, explained David Dutkiewicz, an entomology technician at the Invasive Species Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.
"LDD moths will lay their egg masses really on anything they can they can sort of crawl to," Dutkiewicz said. "There have been some reports down in southern Ontario of people finding egg masses on their Christmas trees, but this is the first time that I've heard of it being brought to Thunder Bay, but thankfully it was detected early."
This species of moths do have a presence in parts of northern Ontario, but have not migrated much further than Sault Ste. Marie and Wawa, which is still over 330 kilometres from Thunder Bay.
The spongy moth is native to Europe and is currently established in northeastern United States and eastern Canada, including portions of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia.
The caterpillars feed on crown foliage of a wide range of hardwood and some softwood trees, which makes it a defoliating forest pest of concern, according to the Invasive Species Centre.
Dutkiewicz said while the moth can wreak havoc on hundreds of tree species, they are not really a concern for people when it comes to their Christmas trees.
"I think it is unlikely that you'd find spongy moth egg masses on a Christmas tree. However, you should always be vigilant of anything that you bring into your house and always sort of take a check to see ... whether there are any sort of egg masses or any type of insects that might be on the Christmas tree," he said.
The egg masses are about the size of a thumb and look like a beige sponge with a tennis ball like consistency, according to Dutkiewicz.
"If you have a soap and water, usually hot soapy water or even cold soapy water, you would scrape the egg mass into either a cup or a water bottle or something like that. You leave it in the soapy water for up to two days and then you can just dispose of it in your household garbage," said Dutkiewicz.
The invasive species centre is also asking people to report any presence of spongy moths through its organization, or directly to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
Since the inspections, Christmas tree lots in Thunder Bay have since reopened. But the Kiwanis Club of Westfort-Thunder Bay lot has since sold out of their remaining limited stock, most of which were fraser firs and scotch pines.
Terry Ferguson, who runs the charity tree lot, said the balsam firs seems to be the variety with that are most affected by the possible infestation.