Lisa,

Do you know what kind of caterpillars they are? The first thing we need to know is "friend or foe"?

No, I am afraid I don't. I know they are not tent catepillars, but that is about all I can say. How can I tell if they are "friend or foe"? The most common ones I see are light green with dark thin stripes along the back, lengthwise. I've looked for an ID website, but haven't found one. They are very common, so I am worried they are 'foe'. But even if they were 'friend', how do you know what the right balance is between letting the caterpillars eat and keeping the host plant healthy. I'm afraid both crabapple and serviceberry are getting stressed.

Lisa

If the plants are getting stressed then perhaps you need to remove the caterpillars by hand. They don't sound like Gypsy Moth caterpillars either but more like cutworms to me. If you touch one does it curl up into a C shape?

I think I found them and they are definitely foe.

Winter Moth Caterpillars.

I think I'll spend a lot of time picking catepillars off of my serviceberry tomorrow. Unfortunately I can't reach most of my crabapple. If anyone could take a look at Figure 7. Are there any butterfly caterpillars that look similar to this that I should avoid squishing? I don't want to hurt a friend accidentally.

Thanks!

Lisa

Here is a link that might be useful: Winter Moths