Unfortunate meeting with a saddleback caterpillar
Location: Central NJ
August 7, 2011 7:32 pm
I was weeding today and reached around a blue mist shrub and felt a sting in my forearm and found one of these saddlebacks. I only brushed it and the stinging lasted for a couple of hours. Went back to the plant and found 1 more.
Signature: malbug
Stinging Saddleback Caterpillar
Dear malbug,
Though we frequently get identification requests for Saddleback Caterpillars, it is not as frequent that we get a report that someone has been stung. Saddleback Caterpillars are not aggressive, and they do not actively seek out folks to sting, however, situations like yours are the most frequently reported stinging encounters. People will often accidentally brush against Saddleback Caterpillar or other stinging species with startlingly painful results. Other North American stinging caterpillar species include the Asp or Puss Caterpillar, the Monkey Slug, the Tussock Moth Caterpillar, the Buck Moth Caterpillar, and the Io Moth Caterpillar. You might also be interested in this University of Kentucky Entomology page on Stinging Caterpillars.
¶ Posted 11 August 2011 § ‡ ° weird bug from Mo. i think its a catapiller of some sort?
Location: springfield, Missouri
August 9, 2011 7:52 pm
I found the strangest looking bug in Springfield mo. Today. It looks kina like a black fuzzy star fish but moves like a catapiller. Its belly looks like somekind of jelly substance that rolls. It can move and flip itself from any direction. HELP please!
Signature: fiesty4ever
Monkey Slug
Dear fiesty4ever,
The Monkey Slug is the caterpillar of the Hag Moth, and it is a Stinging Caterpillar that should be handled with caution, or better yet, not handled at all.
4
¶ Posted 09 August 2011 § ‡ ° Crazy caterpillar
Location: Amani Nature Reserve, Northeast Tanzania
May 18, 2011 3:18 am
I’ve seen 3 or 4 of these guys now, but the only help I’ve gotten on ID is that it is some type of moth. Anybody out there know?
Signature: Phil
Stinging Slug Caterpillar
Hi Phil,
This is sure a beautiful photograph. Our money is on a Stinging Slug Caterpillar from the family Limacodidae, but we haven’t the time at the moment to research an accurate species identification.
6
¶ Posted 18 May 2011 § ‡ ° Angry litte catapillar
Location: Nth Queensland Australia
February 21, 2011 5:06 am
Gday mate,
was out in the garden and brushed past a tree that this guy was living in. It took about 5 seconds before I felt like I was being branded with a hot iron ( or a million wasps – not sure)
anyway was real curious to find out what kind it was?
Signature: Doug from Downunder
Chinese Junk
Gday Doug,
You had an unfortunate encounter with a Stinging Slug Caterpillar in the family Limacodidae. In Australia, the family is known as the Cup Moth family and the caterpillars, many of which can sting, are called Spitfires according to the Brisbane Insect website. Your particular caterpillar is the Mottled Cup Moth, Doratifera vulnerans, and the caterpillar, according to the Brisbane Insect Website, is called a Chinese Junk: “because of their shape and their way of moving like ship at sea.”
3
ID
Location: Colombia
January 8, 2011 6:01 pm
I found this strange ”bug” and was wondering what it is. My guess is a catapiller. I am in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombian Andes.
Scale in cm.
Signature: Scott Parks
Monkey Slug
Hi Scott,
This is a Monkey Slug, Phobetron pithecium, and you are correct that it is a caterpillar.
¶ Posted 09 January 2011 § ‡ ° Green Round Bug
Location: knob noster missouri
December 21, 2010 3:43 pm
This bug was found on a oak leaf in Knob Noster MO in Aug. It had parasitic wasp eggs laid on its back. I think it may be a species of the tomato hornworm. The color is similar but it’s shaped different. It’s almost oval but, flat on the bottom. One end of it had a little bit of a caterpillar body that would come in and out. It was stuck to the leaf. when I got it off and looked at the under belly it had many legs. almost centipede like.
Signature: I’m just interested in the bug. Whatever is easier
Slug Moth Caterpillar parasitized by Braconid
Your caterpillar is most likely a Yellow Shouldered Slug Moth Caterpillar, Lithacodes fasciola, and we agree that the parasites are Braconids. We found a photo on BugGuide of a similar parasite/host relationship.
Bugs in Costa Rica
Location: Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
October 6, 2010 5:40 am
Hi Bugman–love the site.
Here is a cool looking caterpillar we saw near Matapalo on the Osa Peninsula in Costa Rica. We did not touch it.
Signature: Simply Bananas
Stinging Slug Caterpillar
Dear Simply Bananas,
This positively gorgeous caterpillar is a Stinging Slug Caterpillar in the family Limacodidae, and it looks very similar to the Saddleback Caterpillar, Acharia stimulea, pictured on BugGuide. You were wise not to touch it. The Paul and Bill website indicates it might even be our North American species.
¶ Posted 06 October 2010 § ‡ ° Flabbergasted
Location: Capon Springs, West Virginia
September 27, 2010 11:11 pm
I found this bug while on vacation… can you identify it? Is it even a bug? From what I can see, slugs have snails and caterpillars have… this guy. Or maybe it’s a small rodent disguised in fluorescent green armadillo shell? Haha…
This was found on a sidewalk in Capon Springs, WV around 9:30am. It’s about 3/4 inch long and 1/2 in wide. I got him (?) to clasp on to the twig and then he barely moved at all. Thanks for your help!
Signature: ~Lisa
Crowned Slug Caterpillar
Hi Lisa,
Your logic about slugs was actually in the right direction. This is called a Crowned Slug, but it is really a caterpillar, Isa textula. You were also wise to use a twig while handling the Crowned Slug as it is a stinging caterpillar. The Crowned Slug is often found feeding on the leaves of oak trees, bug according to BugGuide, they will also feed upon the leaves of “cherry, maple, basswood, elm and beech.“
¶ Posted 28 September 2010 § ‡ ° 
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