Yes, I found that out. They probably love my cypress mulch! I picked 2 off yesterday and found none today so I hope that's it for the year. Thanks!

sawfly larvae of some kind I would guess.

Thanks so much. I checked out sawflies and found a photo of the exact one like mine. It's called macremphytus tarsatus. I hope I can save my tree!

Luckily they are large enough to pick off. If you can't reach them, you can put old sheets under the three and give the branches a bit of a smack with a stick to knock them off. Though they take the leaves, they rarely kill the trees.

Dogwoods like Pagodas are just so lovely in a garden or yard, but since they are native, there are plenty of critters that love to eat them! After knocking them off, you can prevent others from eating the leaves by spraying it with a hot pepper oil spray from a garden shop. I would usually toss them in the woods where there are wild Dogwoods, but a kind way of killing them is either put them out for the birds or dump them in a bucket of soapy water. Typically they go pretty fast.

The native Dogwoods have dealt with these for a long time, and your Pagoda is probably just as tough.

Thanks for your advice!