M.O.A.B wrote:
Gillenator wrote:
Lol! Just read in a Dutch newspaper that these caterpillars put 4 Belgian soldiers out of service.
What the hell? Did they beat them or something?
Not quite;
It is a plague here it at the moment, and it is not just a caterpillar
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_ProcessionaryThe moths are posing an increasing threat to humans as their range is being extended by the warming European climate. The backs of older caterpillars (3rd to 6th instars) are covered with as many as 63,000 pointed defensive bristles containing an urticating toxin (thaumetopoein or closely related compounds). Even if the larvae are not handled, the setae break off readily, become airborne and can cause epidemic caterpillar dermatitis (lepidopterism), manifested as a papular rash, pruritus, conjunctivitis and, if inhaled, pharyngitis and respiratory distress including asthma or even anaphylaxis.
In 2007 infestations in the Belgian province of Limburg were so acute that governor Steve Stevaert deployed 20 soldiers to burn them[1].
So it sounds lame, but it is a real problem
R
