Following reports of the first sightings of oak processionary caterpillars of the year, you should take care if you spend a lot of time outside. If you touch the caterpillar you may experience a nasty reaction: burn sensations and rashes on your skin.
Präsenz vum Eichen-Prozessions-Spinner an der Stad (31.5.19)Luxembourg's Nature Conservation Agency has noticed that numbers of the caterpillar seem to be increasing year on year.
Based on the number of people who call the agency and on the number of people who have to visit their doctor with skin ailments, it is "likely that there are more of the caterpillars", said Dr Laurent Schley, biologist and Deputy Head of the Nature Conservation Agency.
There aren't any preventative measures to keep the oak processionary caterpillars at bay, so they can only be fought off/removed once they have appeared.
Schley emphasised that it is unnecessary to fear every caterpillar you see, adding that "not all caterpillars are oak processionaries, and that as there are many types of butterflies in the country, there may be other caterpillars that resemble them" and thus they often get mistaken for oak processionaries.
The Nature Conservation Agency and Health Services are happy to help with the identification of the caterpillars. The easiest way to get assistance with this is to email a photo of the caterpillar to the experts.
Hogweed threat
A plant called giant hogweed causes even worse burns than oak processionaries which is why the plant has been combated for a number of years in Luxembourg.
Luxembourg's Nature Conservation Agency, as well as water management and nature parks, have been working systematically to detect and remove the plants.
When it is discovered somewhere, it is destroyed by people wearing special equipment to protect them from coming into contact with the leaves and the substance which causes burns in connection with sunlight.
It doesn't hurt to be careful though.
Giant hogweed could theoretically grow anywhere, but it is most often found along the borders of forests, bodies of water and along streets.
