Businesses along Mathews Meyiwa Road in Stamford Hill are calling on eThekwini’s Parks Department to assist with an infestation of caterpillars whose bristles are causing symptoms ranging from rashes to respiratory issues, affecting many staff members.
The business owners said they believe the caterpillars’ hairs have poison which causes symptoms similar to that of someone exposed to poison ivy. One of the business owners, Bash Rashid, said the infestation is a real call for concern as people are getting sick from these insects. In the past weeks a lady from a scrap collection business on the same street had a reaction and had to leave work early to seek help at a clinic where she received an injection to stop the itch. Charlene Singh said the itch started in the morning. “In less than five minutes from standing outside, under the trees, I felt a burning sensation all over my body. I could not handle it and had to go to the clinic for help,” she said. The business owners said they have tried to get help from eThekwini’s Parks Department as this is new to them, however, their attempts had failed. “They actually told us if we cut those trees we would get into trouble and that was not the issue, we just needed them to come out and see these caterpillars,” said Rashid.
Kathija Lauten of weFEEDsa, a non-profit organisation that does feedings on the same street, said she has to deal with an allergic reaction from the insects on a daily basis. “This one morning I had sixty bumps on my arms. This is of great concern as we do daily feedings under these trees in front of our building. We have now had to move to the back of the building so that the hairs do not go into the food that we serve the people and that they do not get a reaction from standing in the queue while waiting for food,” said Lauten. She said she has had to put some staff on leave so that the back office can accommodate those who do come to work. “We have also had to call pest control to come spray our office and outside, however, it did not solve the problem,” Lauten said. She added that the municipality is well aware of the problem, however, they are not doing anything about it. The pest control specialist who was called to spray the insects said that in his 21 years of experience in pest control, he has never seen this kind of caterpillar in Durban. “These caterpillars are very rare. The client did say that it’s giving them itches, however, looking at them I did not think they are dangerous. I use normal crawling insect spray and I do not know whether it helped or not,” he said.
Sharmaine Sewshanker, Democratic Alliance PR Councillor, was called to Stamford Hill to witness this herself. “I have been in touch with management in eThekwini’s Parks Department, however, I was told that they do not have a spray they can use to get rid of these insects. They said that the sprays that are recommended for spraying the insects are not environmentally friendly and therefore cannot be used in a public space,” said Sewshanker. In an effort to get more information about these caterpillars, the Springfield Weekly Gazette contacted Westville Conservancy’s Sue Smith who referred us to Sun Bradley, an expert on caterpillars. Bradley said the species is definitely not a Brown-tailed Moth caterpillar as the business owners assumed and had reported. She said the Brown-tailed Moth caterpillar is native to Europe and these ones found in the trees on Mathews Meyiwa Road are a different species. “I can confirm that these are Red-dotted Euproctis (Euproctis rufopunctata), native to the region. They feed on Combretum molle (this is the tree you have them on), among others. The larvae tend to swarm, which is normal and natural for this species. The caterpillars complete their larval stage of life within three to four weeks from hatching, and should soon pupate inside cocoons they spin on the tree. The moths that emerge a couple weeks later fly at night and are pollinators, as well as an important food source for a variety of wildlife, from spiders to bats.
“Being Euproctis species, their defence mechanism is urticating hairs, which can cause an intense itch in cases of physical contact with the caterpillars. For this reason, it is best not to handle them unnecessarily. Wiping down the affected area with a wet towel and applying antihistamine cream will bring instant relief. It is highly unlikely for them to occur in such numbers as to cause serious health issues, but that being said, this has been an exceptionally rainy season and caterpillars are thriving. Best is to proceed with caution and avoid walking under trees where they are currently feeding, as well as close windows facing the canopies in question. I assure you that any inconvenience is temporary. “I would also like to point out that the vast majority of caterpillars don’t and can’t harm people in any way. It is only a few certain species that take their defence a bit more seriously, and those are usually rather hairy and thus easy to spot,” said Bradley. EThekwini Municipality was contacted for comment, however, none was received by the time of going to print.
