It’s that time of year again when caterpillars seem to be everywhere. Oh sure, caterpillars can be seen from spring till late fall, sometimes in huge numbers. How can you forget those cankerworms that dangled on silky threads from every tree branch by the thousands, no millions, last April. No, what I’m talking about is the huge variety of species that can be viewed at this time of year. Both moth and butterfly species have been busy all summer producing youngRead more
Posts tagged: #caterpillar
Tent Caterpillars
There are two species of moth, among others, which are active now in the form of larvae or caterpillars. They are similar in name and seasonality. They are communal. And, they are both tent caterpillars. The one above, as labeled, is an eastern tent caterpillar (Malacosoma americanum). The other, is a forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma disstria). These are the hairy caterpillars we humans most often see crawling across sidewalks, driveways, and everywhere else in spring, after having consumed all orRead more
Worms (caterpillars), Everywhere!
While walking along the paths and trails here at the Museum, you may have noticed tiny green, brown or even black, wiggly objects dangling down from the trees on silvery threads of silk. Indeed, you may have walked into a few of them, smack in the face. They seem to be everywhere. You may already be familiar with them, calling them inchworms, loopers, or cankerworms. You may even know that they are the caterpillars (larvae) of small unobtrusive brown moths.Read more
What’s the Difference?
Top Photo: Sawfly larva or caterpillar? I received an email, with a blurry photo attached, stating that the emailer had taken the photo in Explore the Wild. The subjects in the photo looked to be caterpillars, but may have been sawflies, I couldn’t tell. I had to go look for myself. The email said that the caterpillars, or whatever they were, were on a birch tree on the north side of the Wetlands. There are three birches on the north side ofRead more
Harvesters Eclose
The subjects of the two images at right are what greeted me as I anxiously inspected the alder this morning. I’d been out of the “office” for three days and was hoping to find both Harvester pupae intact. The first chrysalis was indeed intact, but much darkened from when I last saw it several days ago. The darkening of the chrysalis is a sure sign that the butterfly within is soon to emerge. It’s actually transparent and what you seeRead more
Not a cloud in sight
As I mentioned in a recent post, Cloudless Sulphurs are laying eggs on our Partridge Pea out in Catch the Wind. Partridge Pea is a senna, a legume. If you have it growing in your yard you will have Cloudless Sulphur caterpillars on the plant, it’s a fairly certain thing in our area. The butterfly is common from about mid July to November, most common in August and September, right now! Cloudless Sulphurs presumably get their common name from theRead more
Caterpillars
A few weeks ago as I ambled down the path of the Dinosaur Trail I noticed a black-bodied caterpillar coming up the path directly at me. The caterpillar was about an inch and three quarters in length and had long, white, silky hairs (setae) sparsely spaced along its length. I hadn’t seen one of these caterpillars before so I took a photo for later indentification. As I continued down the path I saw another black caterpillar with long silky hairRead more
Monarchs
The other day, I was admiring the Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) in Catch the Wind when a Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) lighted on the flowers and began to nectar. I photographed the butterfly and continued my walk down the path. When I got back to the office to download and catalogue the day’s photos I noticed something odd on several of the photos. There was a caterpillar just behind the butterfly’s right wing. It was a Monarch caterpillar. A few weeksRead more
What’s up in the Wild
Here’s a little of what’s going on in the Wild at the Museum…a caterpillar. A damselfly. An assassin bug. A nest-building bird. A morphing frog. A tree frog who thinks it can’t be seen. And, a bird with a frog. And that’s some of what I’ve been seeing. How about you?Read more