Family stunned as 'bizarre' 15-foot web spun by CATERPILLARS appears on their hedge overnight Family feared the giant web was spun by an enormous spider They were relieved to find it was created by thousands of moth larvae The tiny creatures are known to cover entire trees with their silk A family were stunned when a huge web covering their hedge appeared overnight - which was spun by thousands of CATERPILLARS. Dwayne Hickman, 37, thought it was spun by a giant spider, but upon closer inspection the family found the web crawling with tiny caterpillars. The IT manager said he was shocked when he realised the little creatures had created the web, and also in awe. Shocked: At first the family feared the giant web that appeared Sunday morning on their hedge was spun by a big spider The 15ft silk structure, spanning the family's garden hedge, in Catherton, Stirchley, Shropshire was created by the tiny bugs as they hatched from the eggs of ermine moths. The father-of-two said: 'My 10-year-old daughter Erin was terrified until we inspected it a closer and found the web to be crawling with tiny caterpillars. 'It's utterly bizarre. It's about 15 feet long and a foot wide. In awe: But upon closer inspection, they realised the giant silk web was created by thousands of tiny baby caterpillars The wriggly creatures weave the web over plants for protection from predators while they gorge themselves ready to pupate into moths '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. Vast: The web has covered almost the entire hedgerow alongside the property in Catherton, Stirchley, Shropshire Covered: The web has been spun by new-born ermine moths and it now spans one side of the house Larvae from the ermine moths spun the web overnight covering the family's entire hedge 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. Yponomeuta, the ermine moth, is so-named as its pattern resembles ermine worn by nobility Silk production isn't just something that spiders do. Many insects spin silk for various different reasons. They range from making pupal cases, to using silk to travel from A to B, to making protective cases for themselves or their young. Arguably the most dramatic use of silk is that seen in a genus of micro-moths, belonging to the Yponomeutidae - the small ermine moths, Yponomeuta. The larvae of the moths - so-named because their wing pattern resembles ermine worn by nobility - are less attractive and spin the silk. Every few years the populations of the moths get so high that the larvae are capable of defoliating entire trees and covering them in blankets of tough silk. There are cases of the tiny creatures hatching and spinning their webs across cars and motorbikes. The larvae have been known to cover entire trees and even bikes and cars with their web