Lymantria dispar (L.) (Lepidoptera: Erebidae) : Current status of biology, ecology, and management in Europe with notes from North America

Boukouvala, Maria C. (author), Kavallieratos, Nickolas G. (author), Skourti, Anna (author), Pons, Xavier (author), Fita, Sergio (author), Bohinc, Tanja (author), Trdan, Stanislav (author), Agrafioti, Paraskevi (author), Athanassiou, Christos G. (author)

The European Spongy moth, Lymantria dispar (L.) (Lepidoptera: Erebidae), is an abundant species found in oak woods in Central and Southern Europe, the Near East, and North Africa and is an important economic pest. It is a voracious eater and can completely defoliate entire trees; repeated severe defoliation can add to other stresses, such as weather extremes or human activities. Lymantria dispar is most destructive in its larval stage (caterpillars), stripping away foliage from a broad variety of trees (>500 species). Caterpillar infestation is an underestimated problem; medical literature reports that established populations of caterpillars may cause health problems to people and animals. Inflammatory reactions may occur in most individuals after exposure to setae, independent of previous exposure. Currently, chemical and mechanical methods, natural predators, and silvicultural practices are included for the control of this species. Various insecticides have been used for its control, often through aerial sprayings, which negatively affect biodiversity, frequently fail, and are inappropriate for urban/recreational areas. However, bioinsecticides based on various microorganisms (e.g., entomopathogenic viruses, bacteria, and fungi) as well as technologies such as mating disruption using sex pheromone traps have replaced insecticides for the management of L. dispar.

• Language: English
• Keywords: European spongy moth, Lymantria dispar, spread, losses, outbreaks, health issues, control
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.02 - Review Article
• Organization: BF - Biotechnical Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2022
• Number of pages: 35 str., art. 854
• Numbering: vol. 13, no. 9
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-141739
• UDC: 632
• ISSN on article: 2075-4450
• COBISS.SI-ID: 124504067
• Publication date in RUL: 06.10.2022

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Insects
• Shortened title: Insects
• Publisher: MDPI AG
• ISSN: 2075-4450
• COBISS.SI-ID: 519122457

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: English
• Keywords: Lymantria dispar, gobar, nadzor, škodljivci rastlin, razširjenost, zdravstveni problemi, poškodbe

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Funding programme: LIFE20 ENV/GR/000801
• Name: Using smart traps and pheromones to control the gypsy moth: ecofriendly control in practice
• Acronym: eGYMER