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Unknown Butterfly Caterpillar from photo archive is Brush Footed Butterfly Caterpillar

what is this caterpiller
I’m scanning some beautiful slides of a photographer who died a couple years ago. She had no family and so her friends and I are trying to save her work and show or sell them. It would help if we knew what we’re looking at and I hope you can help with this one. She traveled all over the world but lived the last decade in Florida. I think this caterpiller was from here. Thank you
Cindy

unknown caterpiller archive Unknown Butterfly Caterpillar from photo archive is Brush Footed Butterfly Caterpillar

Hi Cindy,
We don’t recognize your caterpillar, but it is a butterfly and not a moth. Because of the structural similarity to the Pipevine Swallowtail Caterpillar, Battus philenor, we suspect this is one of the Swallowtails, probably an exotic species and not a Floridian one. Perhaps one of our readers will recognize this stunning caterpillar.

Update: December 18, 2008
Caterpillar Identifications
Thu, Dec 18, 2008 at 8:57 PM
Hello again, Daniel. … a few other IDs and correction.
This larva is in the genus Idea (Nymphalidae, Danainae). If I could see a high-resolution photo, I would probably be able to identify the species and country/area of origin.
I hope the above information is helpful.
Best wishes,
Keith Wolfe
aka “EarlyStages”

Posted 08 August 2008 § brush footed butterfly caterpillars ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Vanessa Caterpillar: possibly Red Admiral

UNIDENTIFIED CATERPILLAR NEEDS YOUR HELP
Hello, Here are two caterpillars that I found on a type of weed that I call the sandpaper leaf weed because the leaves feel exactly like sandpaper. It looks a little like a mourning cloak caterpillar but I don’t know for certain. The chrysalises’ are about 7/16th of an inch long. I looked through your website and couldn’t find any that looked like this. Can you help me? Thanks a lot. I’ve named many a caterpillar from images from this site. Keep up the good work.
Lisa

vanessa cat lisa Vanessa Caterpillar: possibly Red Admiral

Hi Lisa,
Since your photos are not critically sharp, and because there is much variability in the caterpillars, we cannot provide a conclusive species identification, but we are certain the genus is Vanessa. We believe your caterpillars are either Red Admirals, Vanessa atalanta, or Painted Ladies, Vanessa cardui. The Red Admiral feeds on plants in the Nettle family and that is consistant with your plant description, so we are favoring the Red Admiral. Since you have actually observed the caterpillars, you can follow the links to the BugGuide images we have posted with your letter on our homepage and try to determine if we are correct. You can also keep a chrysalis in a small cage until the butterfly emerges. Please let us know what you discover.

Posted 01 August 2008 § brush footed butterfly caterpillars ‡ Comments (0) °

Monarch Caterpillar

Dear Bugman,
I found this Caterpillar in some vine on my fence in the backyard. I live in central Illinois. Can you help me figure out what kind it is? Can I possibly watch it change? Thanks!
Blaire

monarch cat blaire Monarch Caterpillar

Hi Blaire,
The vine must be a climbing milkweed since this is the larva America’s (if not the world’s) most beloved butterfly, a Monarch Buttefly Caterpillar.

Posted 01 August 2008 § brush footed butterfly caterpillars ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Unknown Swallowtail Butterfly Caterpillar from Guatemala is identified

What kind of animal is this?
Hi,
I would like to know if you people know what kind of animal this is. Country: Guatemala. Region: Petén. City: Tikal. Size: 6-7 centimers. We touched the animal with a wooden stick and then it made some attack move or something. His tongue came out like some sort of snake. The movie were it can be seen is over here: http://jasperstevens.nl/mexico/beest.mov Thanks in advance,
Jasper Stevens
The Netherlands

swallowtail cat guatemala Unknown Swallowtail Butterfly Caterpillar from Guatemala is identified

hi Jasper,
This is some species of Swallowtail Butterfly Caterpillar, probably in the genus Papilio. The tongue you describe is a scent gland known as an osmetrium. We will try to identify the species of this pretty caterpillar.

Update:
Caterpillar Identifications
Thu, Dec 18, 2008 at 8:57 PM
Hello again, Daniel.
a few other IDs and correction.
Yes, this wandering prepupa (compare its faded coloration to this caterpillar still feeding on an avocado leaf: http://www.flickr.com/photos/missingchandra/76362584/ ) will soon metamorphose into one of the 11 or so butterflies in the ” Pyrrhosticta ” group of Papilio swallowtails — P. cleotas ,P. garamas ,P. victorinus , etc.
I hope the above information is helpful.
Best wishes,
Keith Wolfe
aka “EarlyStages”

Posted 24 July 2008 § swallowtail caterpillars ‡ Comments (1) °

Unknown Florida Caterpillar is Ruddy Daggerwing

ficus creature
Heya guys, Cool site. I live in South Florida and I found this tasty little morsel under a ficus tree after a July rain storm. I don’t know if it crawled there or fell from the tree. Any way I hope it wasn’t poisonous! So what was it? seeya,
Britt

caterpillar ficus florida Unknown Florida Caterpillar is Ruddy Daggerwing

Hi Britt,
We do not recognize your caterpillar, but have decided to post it before trying to identify it. Structually, it resembles a Milkweed Butterfly in the subfamily Danainae, but not the species represented on BugGuide found in Florida. The coloration is quite different. It also doesn’t matche the species found on Geocities from Australia. We wonder if perhaps this is some tropical species that found its way to Florida, or if it is an escapee from a butterfly pavilion.

Update: (07/15/2008)
Daniel:
Had we not had one of these caterpillars posted on Bugguide about a week ago, I never would have known what it was, either. But, it is the larva of the “ruddy daggerwing” butterfly, native to Florida. Neat find, great pic!
Eric

Thanks Eric for the information about the Ruddy Daggerwing, Marpesia petreus.

Posted 14 July 2008 § brush footed butterfly caterpillars ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Gossamer Winged Butterfly Caterpillar

pink caterpillar
Dear Bugman,
I found this pretty bubblegum pink caterpillar this afternoon eating my scarlet runner beans. My daughters and I have really enjoyed your site, and thought about you right away. I’m attaching two pictures, and I hope that you can help us.
Sherry O’Rorke
Sparkman, Arkansas

pink slug cat sherry Gossamer Winged Butterfly Caterpillar

Hi Sherry,
We believe this is some species of Slug Caterpillar in the family Limacodidae, but we were unable to locate an exact match on BugGuide.

Update: (07/21/2008)
Sirs – The ” Probably Unknown Slug Caterpillar (07/11/2008) pink caterpillar” most likely is in the family Lycaenidae. See http://www.dallasbutterflies.com/Butterflies/LARVA/pics/henricilarvae.jpg for an example.
Ed Saugstad
Sinks Grove, WV.

Posted 11 July 2008 § ‡ Comments (0) °

Giant Swallowtail Caterpillars

caterpillars? in Florida
We live in Orlando, Florida and my husband found these caterpillars (?) on our Key Lime Tree. Can you tell us what kind they are? They had amazing long red forked tongues. We are a crowd of bug lovers but we have never seen these and they made us a bit nervous with the long forked tongue. Thank you for any information.
Andrea K

giant swallowtail cats andr Giant Swallowtail Caterpillars

Hi Andrea,
These are Giant Swallowtail Caterpillars, Papilio cresphontes. It is widely accepted that they mimic bird droppings to avoid getting eaten. The red forked “tongue” is a scent organ knows as the Osmetrium. Giant Swallowtail Caterpillars are harmless and develop into beautiful butterflies..

Posted 29 June 2008 § swallowtail caterpillars ‡ Comments (0) °

Blue Caterpillar

Caterpillar ID?
Hey Bugman!
I found this caterpillar enjoying my purple verbena. I looked on your website and Bug Guide, I couldn’t find it. I thought it might be a slug caterpillar because of its shape, but it doesn’t have stingers on it. It’s a mauve color and I tried to get a super clear photo of it, but I didn’t have much luck. I love your website. It’s the first one I check when I need to ID something. Thanks for all of your hard work!! Thanks!
Sheila H. Bragg
Rincon, GA

blue caterpillar sheila Blue Caterpillar

Hi Sheila,
Your caterpillar is one of the Gossamer Winged Butterflies in the family Lycaenidae, probably one of the Blues in the subfamily Polyommatinae. It looks quite close to a photo of the Ceraunus Blue caterpillar posted to BugGuide. The species is found in Georgia

Posted 22 June 2008 § ‡ Comments (0) °

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