News
Summer 2023 Cariboo Defoliator Spray Program
The Ministry of Forests, Cariboo Region, is planning to aerially spray up to 40,000 hectares of Douglas-fir forest to reduce the populations of western spruce budworm. Spraying will occur between June 15 and July 15 with the biological insecticide Foray 48B (active ingredient Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (B.t.k.)). Please review the Notice of Intent to Treat.PDF and Treatment Map.PDF for more details.
Summer 2021 Defoliator Spray Programs
Building populations of western hemlock looper, western spruce budworm and Douglas-fir tussock moth were actively managed throughout the Southern Interior through the aerial application of Foray 48B (active ingredient Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (B.t.k.)). For more information on the spray programs view the Notice of Intent to Treat for each Region:
- The Thompson Okanagan Region aerial sprayed Btk to manage building populations of western hemlock looper and western spruce budworm: Notice of Intent to Treat.PDF; TOR Spray Blocks 1-6.PDF; TOR Spray Blocks 7-12.PDF
- The Kootenay Boundary Region aerial sprayed Btk to manage building populations of western hemlock looper to mitigate impacts to forest stands and to mitigate impacts on Caribou habitat: Notice of Intent to Treat.PDF
- The Cariboo Region aerial sprayed Btk program to manage building populations of western hemlock looper and Douglas-fir tussock moth: Notice of Intent to Treat.PDF; Proposed Cariboo Spray Blocks Map.PDF
Western Hemlock Looper and Phantom Hemlock Looper Outbreaks: September, 2020
Forests on the Sunshine Coast and Lower Mainland are currently experiencing western hemlock looper (Lamdina fiscellaria lugubrosa) and phantom hemlock looper (Nepytia phantasmaria) outbreaks. Both loopers are native defoliators. During the summer the looper caterpillars defoliated a range of conifer hosts, and now the adults (moths) are flying and visible around many homes and green spaces.
Photo credit: Dave Holden, CFIA
