Like Moths from the Rain – Spiders Next

MANY residents in the Upper Hunter have noticed huge numbers of moths since the recent rain, David Boch environmental scientist from the Australian Museum, explained the sudden increase and said the spider population will soon follow the trend. 

Jessi Potts’ verandah was inundated by the invertebrates, just north of Scone.

“Moth eggs which may have laid dormant during the drought, now have the perfect conditions to hatch, feed well as caterpillars and even though moths only live for a few days, there are more of them laying eggs, more of the eggs are surviving and the population has had the perfect conditions,” said Mr Bock.

“The drought has got rid of some of the predators, birds may have moved away, or some predators have died in the drought,” he said.

“So the food for insects is plentiful and the things that eat them aren’t so plentiful, so the conditions are right for the species.

“We’ve had a lot of enquiries about different kinds of caterpillars people are seeing in their gardens.

“We are also seeing more mosquitoes around with more water around, so those numbers have increased and in the next month or so you’ll see spider numbers increase, especially the ones that create the big webs in the gardens that you walk into and then do the little dance,” he said.

“So that insect or spider population will breed up and the next things that prey on them will feed up and do well, so there really it is the web of life idea and each layer up tends to have the right conditions for that population to feed and breed well,” David Bock said.