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Woolly caterpillar ID?
Mon, Nov 17, 2008 at 10:16 PM
Hi, Bugman!
I love your site, and I’ve used it many times to identify creepy and not so creepy crawlers, hoppers and fliers that I’ve found while out photographing the wonders of nature. However, I browsed your caterpillar category all the way back to 2005, and didn’t see one of these. The closest was the ‘Laugher’.
This past September, I noticed something white and fluffy on a tree or bush (sorry! I can’t now remember which). On close inspection, it turned out to be a caterpillar, and there wasn’t just one, but many.
They looked for all the world as though they were covered in cotton wool shag carpeting. I wish I could tell you what sort of bush or tree they were feeding on, but I know as much about horticulture as I do entomology, and that’s not a whole lot. Plus I kinda, sorta forgot to take note.
These pics were taken at ~15:40 on the 7th of September in Southwestern Ontario, in an area with diverse habitats nearby. Lots of woods, open spaces, small marshy spots.
I severely reduced the size of the images to save bandwidth, but they should be large enough to identify the subject. If you do want larger ones, you need only ask!
Thanks in advance!!
Frank
Southwestern Ontario, Canada

Butternut Woolly Worm

Hi Frank,
Though it looks like a caterpillar, the Butternut Woolly Worm, Eriocampa juglandis, is actually a Sawfly Larva. Sawflies are non-stinging relatives of wasps and bees. The Butternut Woolly Worm feeds on the leaves of black walnut, butternut and hickory.

Butternut Woolly Worm

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