Telford family shocked by huge web
A wondrous web which engulfed 15ft of hedgerow is not home to a super-sized spider but the work of very hungry caterpillars.
Dwayne Hickman, 37, an IT manager from Stirchley, Telford, is not often baffled by the web, but when he discovered this sizeable structure outside his home he feared an eight-legged invasion.
Mr Hickman could not believe his eyes when found his hedge on the corner of Catherton and Randlay Avenue had been covered in a white film overnight.
His 10-year-old daughter Erin was terrified until a closer inspection found the web to be crawling with tiny caterpillars.
The silk blanket is thought to have been spun by caterpillars hatched from the eggs of Ermine Moths.
The wriggly creatures weave the web over plants for protection from predators while they gorge themselves ready to pupate into moths.
Mr Hickman said: "It's utterly bizarre. It's about 15 feet long and a foot wide.
"It's as thick as snow it looks like it's been snowing. It's down the side of our house.
"It's that thick that the bush its sitting on is dying. It's going brown.
"At first I thought it was a massive spider then I had a closer look and found it absolutely covered in these tiny caterpillars.
"They are black and brown and about the size of my fingernail. It's absolutely covered in them, they are everywhere you look.
"We are all a bit in awe really."
