RESIDENTS have spotted a freaky-looking tree covered in webs - with many questioning what it is on social media.

The tree, which has attracted attention by passers-by, is located in Stoke Prior off Hanbury Road.

There's a plethora of small caterpillars all around the tree.

Photographer Rachel Tapp shared photos of the tree on the Wildlife of Worcestershire Facebook group.

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust has confirmed that the web-covered tree is the work of the spindle ermine moth.

A spokesperson for the Trust said: "The spindle ermine moth has always been present in Worcestershire, but numbers vary from year to year which explains there being years where their vast webs are more visible.

"They seem to especially like spindle in open sunny unshaded sites often along roadsides which also explains why road users will often see them.

"Despite the vast webs covering the spindle, the spindle trees and shrubs usually recovers and is covered in leaf again later in the year.  Spindle trees and shrubs, where the moths are largely found, are not particularly common.

"They exist in all 10km2 blocks across Worcestershire (a method used for biological recording) but are more common in the neutral and calcareous grassland areas in the south and west of the county.

"If anyone comes across a spindle tree covered in spindle ermine moth webs, please take a photo and send it alongside its location to the Worcestershire Biological Records Centre on records@wbrc.org.uk".