large caterpillar found in our yard near Charleston SC
Hello,
attached please find a photo of the largest caterpillar my husband and I have ever seen. Any ideas what it is and what we should feed it or where we should put it to feed itself? thanks,
Kate Hammond
Summerville, SC

Hi Kate,
This magnificent specimen is an Imperial Moth Caterpillar, Eacles imperialis. We have numerous images of the stages of metamorphosis of this beautiful moth. The caterpillar looks to be about ready to pupate, judging by its color, though this is a highly variable caterpillar with regards to coloration. It will pupate underground in loose soil. It is not interested in eating at this point. The caterpillars are often discovered searching for a good place to dig into the ground after leaving the trees upon which they have been feeding.

what is this cocoon?
Hi I came across this cocoon about 2 weeks ago on the ground. It has been scratching on the inside ever since. I’ve determined it might be a polymorphous moth. Any thoughts? Also how long will it take before it will hatch? Thanks,
Ryan

Hi Ryan,
We are nearly positive that this is a Luna Moth Cocoon, but it might be a Polyphemus Moth. Without meaning to sound smug, it will hatch when it is ready. The complexity of insect metamorphosis is not like a three minute egg. Some combination of time, temperature, humidity, length of day, and perhaps airborn pheromones will trigger the hatching.

You wanted C regalis pupae photos?
Hi Bugman,
Love your site. I’m sure your comment that you don’t have many HHD pupae will prompt a flood, so I’m adding to it. I also have a couple of moths from Taiwan for ID I’m attaching: 1st: appears to be an Arctiid, tried searching with “clear winged” / “Taiwan” and did not locate anything. Location: Sun-Moon lake, Nantou county 2nd: attracted to lights at ~ 3000 ft. Location: Nantou county Thanks for your thoughts. Photos taken with Sony DSC-H2, auto, macro mode, cropped and resized with Microsoft Paint.
Ray

Hi Ray,
Your letter is so funny. We were hardly deluged with photos of Regal Moth or Royal Walnut Moth Pupae, but we did get two submissions. Your photo is wonderful. We have been very busy and are way behind in posting new submissions. We will try to address your Arctiid questions in the future.

What was that bug?
Hi Bugman !
I was recently visiting my folks in Maine, this cocoon(?) was in a maple tree in the yard. It is probably about 5 inches long. What do you think? Pondering in Portland,
Jim

Hi Jim,
This is a Cecropia Moth Cocoon. The small hole in the second photograph indicates that it may have been parasitized since it seems to small for the adult moth to have emerged.

Guatemalan Caterpillar
Hey. Love the site. I took this picture in 2005 in the mountains around Chinique, Guatemala. What was it and was I wise not to touch it? Thanks,
Terry

Hi Terry,
We are quite confident saying this is a stinging Saturniid Caterpillar. We thought it resembled an Io Moth Caterpillar, so we researched members of the genus Automeris. We could not find a satisfactory match on Kirby Wolfe’s awesome website, until we got to Hyperchiria nausica. It looks pretty close. Leucanella hosmera looks even better, as does Leucanella saturata. We are most satisfied with Leucanella saturata or Leucanella hosmera.

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.