Residents living near “spooky” web-covered trees say they feel like they cannot open their windows because of an abundance of creepy crawlies.
Numerous trees and shrubs along Waterloo Road in Beeston, Nottinghamshire, have been taken over by bird cherry ermine caterpillars.
A wildlife expert said the silk webs were a “defensive” measure taken by the insects.
Mavis Jones, a local resident for 17 years, said she had never seen anything like this before and had been left clearing caterpillars away from her windowsill.
“I like my windows open… I can’t have them open in case they crawl in,” she said. “I was spraying them with some bleach, but it didn’t touch them.”
Another resident, 54-year-old Lyn Abell, said the “disgusting” phenomenon meant she had to move her car to prevent the seats from being eaten.
“They’re hanging [down], so you can’t walk on the path; you’ve got to walk on the road. It’s a nightmare,” she said.
She added all of her flowers had died because of them, and she could not pick up her watering can because that had also been “covered in silk”.
Although the scene has left numerous residents feeling uneasy, there are other locals who find the circumstances “novel”.
Charles Shellard, 24, said it appeared as though the trees had been “turned to stone or petrified”, and that it looked “spooky”.
“I think it’s pretty cool to have such a strange sight around,” he said.
“I’m quite looking forward to see if they all hatch and turn into beautiful butterflies at some point; that would be a good sight.
“It’s just nice to see a bit of variation in nature, you know, these things you don’t see every day.”