My family is traveling to Maine during the Browntail moth caterpillar season (for a couple days then on up to Canada). We used to live in Maine and never really heard about or noticed these caterpillars. Now all our relatives are complaining about them and the problems they cause and have had issues from them.

My question is, are they easy to avoid? We love the outdoors and were planning to hike (if not too muddy). But I have a child with excema and asthma and I don’t want our trip ruined by any rashes or breathing difficulties from the caterpillar hairs.

Is this really something to worry about and if so, what’s the best way to avoid them? Are they everywhere outside or just in the woods?

TIA

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SyntheticCorners28 t1_jbh6ot0 wrote on March 9, 2023 at 12:35 AM

They are so hit or miss though. We had them so bad 2 years ago. Last year nothing. I don't see nests in the trees this winter either. Hard to tell if you will run into them.

PencillCat t1_jbgz64h wrote on March 8, 2023 at 11:40 PM

Best advice I can think of is research what kind of trees they primarily live in, and try to avoid large groves. The nests are kind of easy to spot, since they can take over whole trees.

I'm pretty sure they're mostly coastal too? Last I heard at least. So it could depend on where you're planning on staying.

They're awful at my mother's house (Hope), she can't even hang clothes out to dry or they'd get covered in caterpillar hairs and they break out in awful rashes. I've only seen a few in my area (Augusta), but not anywhere near as bad.

Bridgertrailrunner t1_jbgvq3t wrote on March 8, 2023 at 11:15 PM

It depends where you are and what stage the caterpillars are in, so it's hard to say. Hiking will probably be fine, but I was up in Camden hills during the peak last year and they were falling out of the trees everywhere we went.

Some kids are completely unbothered, others get miserable rashes. Think of it like traveling to an area with a lot of poison ivy.

For my money, If your kids are young I would avoid the woods during the peak.

queentiffa1234 OP t1_jbgxv7f wrote on March 8, 2023 at 11:31 PM

Thank you. He’s not young, he’s college aged and his asthma isn’t bad but his excema is really bad (usually only when he is sick). Maybe we will see if we can do coastal things instead. Early May might still be too cold for that though.

Afoolsjourney t1_jbh8h8o wrote on March 9, 2023 at 12:48 AM

So I live in Western Maine, and last summer I hung my sheets out to dry on a line because I do not own a dryer. Couple hours later I brought them in and put them on my bed.

Next morning I woke up with a full body rash. It wasn’t on my face but it sure as hell was everywhere else. Took over a week to go away. Ended up with a mentholated hydrocortisone cream prescription to help because I basically wanted to tear my skin off.

Never saw a caterpillar, never touched a caterpillar.

queentiffa1234 OP t1_jbk5idb wrote on March 9, 2023 at 5:02 PM

Hmm that’s my worry - how can you avoid something you can’t see.

DMvsPC t1_jbks72w wrote on March 9, 2023 at 7:22 PM

Also the hairs stay active in the environment for around 3 years.

Dry-Persimmon-2234 t1_jbj1yje wrote on March 9, 2023 at 12:11 PM

I trip into poison ivy much more then I deal with caterpillars

deerockxrandall t1_jbzvsjs wrote on March 13, 2023 at 12:27 AM

WHY ARE PEOPLE ACTING LIKE BTM ARE BRINGING ON THE APOCALYPSE?

No offense OP, this isn’t about you.