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Variety in the Heartland |
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Bumper Crop Of Caterpillars
05/11/08 MRC/CJ
Researchers associated with the University of Kentucky
College of Agriculture say the population levels of the
eastern tent caterpillars are among the highest they’ve
seen since 2001, when Mare Reproductive Loss Syndrome (MRLS)
hit central Kentucky horse farms particularly hard.
The caterpillars also are wandering a bit later than usual
because of the cool spring, according to Dan Potter,
professor of entomology at UK’s College of Agriculture.
MRLS was strongly linked by university researchers to
ingestion of the caterpillars by pregnant mares, leading
to late-term foal losses, early-term fetal losses and weak
foals. The crisis decimated the yearling population for
several years. It was estimated that 30 percent of the
2001 thoroughbred foal crop was lost to MRLS.
The UK entomologists recommend that unless horse farm
managers have aggressively managed eastern tent
caterpillars, or have removed host trees, they should keep
pregnant mares out of pastures bordered by cherry trees or
other possible caterpillar sites for a few weeks.
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