Plague of toxic caterpillars take over Britain – and the worst is yet to come

A plague of toxic caterpillars is taking over Britain – with attacks on humans soaring.

Much of the southeast of England has been conquered by the poisonous critters – whose tiny hairs can cause serious health problems like allergic reactions, vomiting, dizziness and asthma attacks.

Forestry Commission expert Andrew Hoppit said: “Exposure to the hairs on the caterpillars can cause itchy rashes, eye and throat irritations and occasionally breathing difficulties and allergic reactions.”

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The Commission said 3,573 infested trees were found in 807 UK sites last year – with 5,244 calls and emails from worried Brits. There were 225 reports of caterpillar “attacks” in 2022.

The pests live in and feed off oak trees and are covered in 60,000 toxic hairs. The oak processionary moth lays its eggs on the trees and its larvae leave their nests to feed on leaves.

The nests – which are white and the size of a tennis ball – have hundreds of the creepy crawlies, which grow to about two-inches long, with caterpillars appearing from March until July.

This isn't the only animal-related health story in the news at the moment.

Warnings about the caterpillars come hot on the heels of concerns from scientists over bird flu in the UK this summer.

Large swathes of birds died from the flu in the UK last summer leading to thousands of avian deaths.

Now, a year on, experts have warned we must be "watchful" of the same tragedies taking place again.

Fears remain that high numbers of bird flu cases among birds increase the chances of it being passed on to mammals.

Such scenarios potentially increase the risk to public health.

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