Years-long spongy moth epidemic fades

Spongy moth larvae feed on tree leaves, contributing to stress that could kill an ailing tree.
Provided
Spongy moth larvae feed on tree leaves, contributing to stress that could kill an ailing tree.
MILLBROOK — The spongy moth epidemic of eastern Dutchess and Columbia Counties and northwestern Connecticut appears to be receding after more than three years of infestation, based on forecasting work and early-summer land surveys undertaken at Millbrook’s Cary Institute.
The spongy moth epidemic has marked widespread defoliation, affecting trees particularly in the area of the New York–Connecticut border.
The current epidemic appeared in Dutchess and Columbia Counties and in Connecticut’s northwest corner in 2021 as a result of various regional ecological factors, combined with the spongy moths’ ability for rapid proliferation.
“The white-footed mouse, which preys on spongy moth [egg masses], is usually enough to keep the population under control,” said Clive Jones, a terrestrial ecologist at the Cary Institute. “If the mouse population collapses, as it did, then the spongy moth population can escape.” Populations of parasitic wasps and flies, which bring the population down to normal levels, can take a few years to grow enough to curb the spongy moth. During this time, when the moths have few significant predators, their population grows unchecked and they rapidly defoliate trees.
This year’s wet spring contributed to the counter-epidemic of both a virus and a fungus antagonistic to spongy moth larvae.
The Cary Institute, in its 2025 forecast of the spongy moth’s prevalence, estimated the outbreak would abate during the summer, leading to a negligible population of spongy moths in previously-affected areas. “We see the population collapse due to the fungus and the virus and due to the other natural enemies’ population growing because of the moth’s rise,” Jones said.
Given the passage of an appropriate period of time for natural mechanisms to control the moth population, “we knew at Cary that there was a very low probability of much defoliation by the spongy moth [in previously-affected areas] this year,” Jones said.
Jones and his colleagues at the Cary Institute compiled their forecast of the danger the spongy moth would pose to trees this summer through the collection of data at the Cary Institute’s own 1,924-acre arboretum, the observation of satellite imagery and through samples taken around the Hudson Valley and into Connecticut’s northwest corner.
Defoliation rarely kills trees directly, even if it occurs for years in a row. But defoliation in conjunction with other harmful factors does kill trees. “Many of the trees out there are fine… but quite a lot have succumbed due to the drought in 2022 and then defoliation in ‘23 and ‘24,” Jones said.
“Spongy moth flare-ups are not cyclical in the sense that they are regularly spaced,” Jones said. “You can fit a periodicity to spongy moth outbreaks which shows that they occur about every 10 years, but it’s no more than a very rough guideline and can be completely wrong.” Before the 2021 epidemic, the last spongy moth infestation occurred in Millbrook nearly
30 years prior, limiting the statistical measures which can be taken to forecast a future spongy moth epidemic.
Habitat for Humanity assisted in the construction and sale of this house at 14 Rudd Pond Road for $392,000.
MILLERTON — Official Dutchess County property transfers for the four months ending in May are fascinating from the sale of the former Presbyterian Church on Main Street for $420,000 to the $300,000 sale of 8.3 acres of the historic Perotti farm for $300,000 where major barn restoration is now underway.
Actively listed properties at the end of July include 14 parcels of land ranging in price from $60,000 for a five-acre lot to six parcels over a million dollars. 15 single family homes are on the market including an $11,750,000 estate on Moadock Road and four village homes for under $500,000.
Residential
14 Rudd Pond Road — 3 bedroom/2 bath home on .64 acres sale recorded in March for $392,000 to Anthony M. Macagnone.
81 Rudd Pond Road — 3 bedroom/2 bath home on .45 acres recorded in April for $360,300 to Sara Whitney Laser.
926 Smithfield Road — Historic house and barns on 8.31 acres sale recorded in May for $300,000 to Colonial House & Barn LLC.
5408 Route 22 — 3 bedroom/2 bath home on 5.38 acres sale recorded in May for $465,000 to Erich McEnroe.
The former Presbyterian Church on Main Street in the Village of Millerton was purchased in May for $420,000 and then pained grey.Christine Bates
Commercial
1 Smith Court, Village of Millerton — Office building sale recorded in March for $825,000 to OneJohnStreet LLC.
58 Main Street, Village of Millerton — Sale of former church recorded in May for $420,000 to 58 Main Street LLC.
5546 Route 22 — Sale of former restaurant on 2 acres recorded in May for $70,000 to Haithem Oueslati Trustee.
Land
State Line Road (#789358) — Sale recorded of 20.82 acres of vacant residential land in March for $150,000 to Elliott Squared LLC.
148 Morse Hill — Sale recorded of 30.03 acres of vacant productive farm land in 5 parcels in March for $800,000 to Thorne Water LLC.
*Town of North East and Village of Millerton property transfers from March through May not previously reported as sales in The Millerton News are sourced from Dutchess County Real Property Office monthly reports for March through May. Details on property from Dutchess Parcel Access. Compiled by Christine Bates, Real Estate Advisor with William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty, Licensed in Connecticut and New York.
Mariah Orms and her horse Shanaclough Quality Clover tore through the water jumps.
AMENIA — Competitors and spectators endured through high heat, rain and a smoky haze for the 40th annual Millbrook Horse Trials at Coole Park.
Four hours of dressage on Thursday, July 24, opened up the competition that puts riders and their horses through a triathlon of equestrian sports. Cross country jumping began on Friday, followed by stadium jumping on Saturday.
Over the last 40 years, the Millbrook Horse Trials has built a reputation that draws athletes and visitors from great distances. Numbering among the competitors were riders at the highest level of the sport of evening, including Olympian Boyd Martin. Martin finished the weekend with a win in the advanced division after a clean run around the showjumping ring on the horse Miss LuLu Herself on Sunday.
That was during a light drizzle that hung in the air over the event grounds on Amenia-Bangall Road. The weekend started with high heat on Thursday and Friday and towering thunder clouds threatening rain for much of Friday afternoon. Partly cloudy skies made way for a smoky haze on Saturday that triggered an air quality alert for the region.
Volunteer parking monitor Alexander King didn’t let the erratic weather keep him down, and he said he didn’t see a drop in numbers either. “Yesterday we probably had, give or take, 300 to 400 people,” he said on Sunday, the final day of the competition.
King travelled from Raleigh, North Carolina, with his wife to attend the event.