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Dear What’s That Bug,
Please find attached a photo of a new resident we have at one of the properties that we manage in Phuket, Thailand. This chap and hundreds of his mates (and possibly relatives) have taken residence on one of the trees in the gardens. Obviously we are keen to identify him (or her) and find ways to limit the affects of his insatiable appetite before we loose too much foliage. Thanking you for your consideration regarding this matter. With kind regards,
Mark.
PS : This particular individual is approx. 10 cms long and has a diameter of approx. 2.5 cms

Hi Mark,
We are nearly certain this is a Giant Atlas Moth Caterpillar, Attacus atlas. We found a wonderful website with images of the entire life cycle. The Giant Atlas Moth is one of the largest moths in the world, with the greatest wing area but not the greatest wing span. Giant Atlas Moths are frequently featured in insect collections as well as in popular butterfly exhibits in zoos. Specimens for exhibits and collections are generally reared in captivity. You should be able to capitalize on the mating flight of the adult moths when they emerge as a tourist attraction as a fair exchange for your foliage loss. Thanks for contributing to our site.

Dear Daniel,
Wow, thanks for the speedy reply – you guys really know your Lepidoptera (new word for me). Once you had correctly identified the species, I also did a little but of searching on the Internet to find out more about our guests. Seems that the ones with the spikes / feathers are most likely male. For your information, on the tree in question (as yet unidentified) all the individuals I was able to observe were male. Is this normal ? Or have external environmental factors conspired to limit their reproductive capacity in some way ? I only ask as I am informed that certain reptiles have the sex of their progeny dictated by nest temperature. I also found out that on occasion, the Giant Atlas Moth can stay for years in its cocoon. Why is this so ? Does a good nights sleep, supersede the promise of unbridled mothly passion or does this wobbly, hungry little guest realize that once out of the cocoon, his days are numbered ? On an un-related note, about six months ago this particular property woke up to find almost every woody surface covered in the casings of cicada’s. It was quite eerie and I felt like I had walked onto the set of some strange B-Movie about an invasion of small, but ferocious looking insects. Curious Place. I wonder what’s next. Thanks again for your help and if we find any more unusual species we will definitely give you and your team a call. With kind regards,
Mark.
PS : For your information, we will not interfere with their life cycle. Although some of my landscaping staff are keen to throw furidan at the problem. Yes, furidan is readily available here and sold over the counter for next to nothing – some peanuts or a small bag of sea shells. Hopefully none of the Villa or Apartment owners will notice or comment on the extra sunshine coming through the canopy or the strange brown balls underfoot.

Hi Mark,
We are not entirely convinced that only the male caterpillars have spikes. We venture that nothing short of DNA analysis can correctly determine the sex of caterpillars. Regarding staying in the pupa stage for several years, we believe there are two possible explanations. If not all moths emerge from the pupa in the same season, the perpetuation of the species is more likely. Also, some species await optimum conditions of temperature and humidity to emerge to better ensure a food source for the young caterpillars, though in tropical climates, this seems less likely a factor. The bottom line is that we are just not sure.

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