Emmerich combats oak processionary caterpillars by helicopter |
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German border municipality opts for preventive aerial spraying, while Dutch authorities increasingly focus on biodiversity
While many Dutch municipalities are increasingly adopting ecological management of the oak processionary caterpillar, the German border municipality of Emmerich has chosen a different strategy. The municipality carries out preventive spraying from helicopters as well as from the ground. According to the German regional newspaper Neue Rhein Zeitung, this approach keeps nuisance to a minimum.
Emmerich sprays forest edges and locations where oak processionary caterpillars have been detected with a bacterial preparation or biocide. This is done before the caterpillars develop the irritating hairs that can cause health problems. In addition, around 600 oak trees at high-risk locations, such as schools, parks and cycle paths, are treated from the ground using aerial work platforms.
A different approach from the Netherlands
The approach differs significantly from that in the Netherlands. Here, an increasing number of municipalities are opting for a combination of monitoring, biodiversity measures and targeted control. This includes encouraging natural predators such as tits and predatory insects by installing nest boxes and creating flower-rich roadside verges. Nests are only removed at locations where the health risks are considered high.
Research also shows that a diverse understory beneath oak trees can help limit the spread of the caterpillars. In addition, natural predators such as the forest caterpillar hunter beetle (Calosoma sycophanta) are becoming more widespread. This beetle feeds, among other things, on the pupae of the oak processionary caterpillar.
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Emmerich opts for preventive aerial control
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From control to management
These differences reflect a broader development in the Netherlands and Flanders. Within a joint project involving the Dutch provinces of Gelderland, Limburg and North Brabant, the municipality of Sittard-Geleen, the Province of Antwerp and the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), the focus has shifted away from complete eradication towards learning to coexist with the oak processionary caterpillar.
According to the project's initiators, no single measure offers a permanent solution to the health problems caused by the caterpillar. They therefore advocate an approach that strengthens biodiversity while minimising the use of biocides. Municipalities are being provided with a practical toolkit to support ecological management.
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An increasing number of Dutch municipalities are focusing on biodiversity and natural predators
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Ecological balance
The oak processionary caterpillar is a native species and, like many other insects, benefits from rising temperatures. For that reason, experts increasingly argue that attention should shift from completely eradicating the caterpillar to restoring ecological balance. Emmerich demonstrates that a very different strategy is also possible.
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The debate is shifting from complete eradication to ecological management
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This article was previously published on 4 August 2026 on the Boomzorg website.
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