There’s nothing that ruins the Christmas season like having a bunch of insect eggs hatch in your Christmas tree.
Oh, you weren’t aware? Yeah, it’s definitely a thing, and it sounds super gross. Read on and we’ll tell you how to avoid this.
If you have a real Christmas tree, this is very important.
Of course, if you have a fake Christmas tree, this doesn’t apply. But real trees are more environmentally friendly and give off a lovely pine scent, so many of us prefer the genuine article.
What should you look out for?
Generally speaking, look out for walnuts. Now, trees aren’t sprouting literal walnuts, and if they were, it probably wouldn’t be a problem. But you might find something that looks vaguely walnut-ish that could pose big problems.
A Facebook page sounded the alarm about these growths.
The Facebook page for Erie County, Ohio, shared this seasonal warning. As you can see, the little walnut-looking pods that you might find on your tree actually contain praying mantis eggs…many, many praying mantis eggs.
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Yecch.
Yeah, I don’t think anyone wants to have hundreds of baby praying mantises hopping around their Christmas tree. The little critters aren’t dangerous to humans or anything like that, but they’re hardly something you’d want to invite into your home en masse.
Here’s what the pod looks like.
It looks benign, similar to the aforementioned walnut, or maybe some other kind of growth. Just know that, if you see this, you’re looking at something than contains a great many praying mantis larvae.
The warning only applies to people who live in certain regions.
Naturally enough, if you live outside of a praying mantis habitat, you won’t encounter these things. The bad news, though, is that praying mantises are distributed all over the place — primarily in tropical regions, but also in temperate areas.
The more you know.
Finding a praying mantis egg pod is a pretty gross scenario to imagine, but this knowledge might help some people avoid it this holiday season.
Just make sure to thoroughly comb through your Christmas tree before setting it up in your living room.
Is it a reason to get a fake tree?
Environmental and authenticity concerns aside, fake trees aren’t likely to harbor creepy crawlies in their plastic branches. So if you are committed to your fake tree, here’s a good justification for hanging onto it.
What do you do if you find one of these growths?
Well, ideally you’ll find it before you set your tree up. In any case, cut off the offending branch and just throw it outside. The larvae will die and you’ll save yourself an infestation.
Have you ever found one of these?
I personally never have, but I come from a devoted fake tree family. Have you ever found something unexpected in a real Christmas tree? If so, make sure to share your experience in the comments.
