REF: Beautiful Unknown Caterpillar (10/05/2004) What’s That Bug?
Hi Daniel!
I think the Aldermans’ “Beautiful unknown caterpillar” is a Pseudosphinx tetrio (Tetrio Sphinx Moth) we get them all the time in our garden feeding on our Plumeria trees (Frangipani) and sometimes on the ficus. They are really ravenous feeders. I am sending you a picture of a bunch of them collected by my kids (to save our trees), they love to see them pupate and later become moths , which they release back in the garden. More information can be found on this site http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/ptetrio.htm By the way, great site.
Erika Schwarz Wilson
Istana, Barbasquillo
Manta- Ecuador
Thank you so much for help in the identification Erika. Please keep sending us photos from Ecuador.
(now identified thanks to Erika)
What’s That Bug?
Hello!
I found this caterpillar in our yard today and was wondering if you could help us identify the type. I’ve looked all over the web and found many that look close – but not with the strips. We live in South Florida (The Florida Keys) and don’t see many caterpillars. Thanks in advance!
The Alderman’s
P.S. Thanks for all the great information on your site!
Hi there Aldermans,
I have also tried unsucessfully to identify your beautiful caterpillar. Because you live in a tropical area there are many species that are not listed in books and on identification websites. We will continue to search.
Ed Note: August 23, 2009
We are working on our archive, subcategorizing the caterpillars, and we realized we never properly identified this Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillar.
Worms?
Hi
I find these guys moving as a group with one or two white grub looking worms along with them. I see them at night or early morning on our sidewalk. They were moving in a circle the other night (pict below). I didn’t know to look under worms, grubs, or caterpillars. I live in southern Connecticut. Any help would be great.
Thanks
Chris
Hi Chris,
You have caterpillars known commonly as Army Worms. These are ravenous, very destructive moth larvae that live their early lives in groups, later dispersing as they grow. Here is a good site with addtional information.
What kinds of caterpillars are these?
Hi,
We found the caterpillar in the first picture in Belfountain, Ontario, and the caterpillar in the second one at Go Home Lake near Georgian Bay, Ontario. We’ve never seen them before! Also, can you direct us to pictures of what they will look like when they turn into moths? Any help to ID them would be appreciated. Thanks!
Janice, Paul, Riley and Gillian
Hi Janice, Pauk, Riley and Gillian,
Your Belfountaine caterpillar is a Laurel Sphinx, Sphinx kalmiae, which is easily distinguished from other Sphinx or Hawkmoth caterpillars known as Hornworms because of its black and blue mottled horn. It feeds on laurels, ashes, lilacs, privets; also reported from poplars. Here is an image of the mounted adult moth and here is a photo of a living specimen.
Your second caterpillar from Go Home Lake is a Giant Silkworm known as a Cecropia Moth, Samia cecropia or Hyalophora cecropia. This is a large beautiful moth. Here is a wonderful site that covers the entire metamorphosis of the Cecropia Moth.
Huge Catapillar
my husband took the picture of the catapillar which he said was as long as a small cucumber we live in montebello, california. What kind is it??? does it produce a huge moth or butterfly???
Sincerely,
Darcy Jimenez
Hi Darcy,
Your caterpillar is the green phase of the White-Lined Sphinx or Striped Morning Sphinx Moth, Hyles lineata. It is a large beautiful moth that is common in southern California. I see large numbers of moths attracted to the lights at USC when I teach night classes there. The caterpillar comes in both a green phase and a dark phase which are colored quite differently. Here is a site with nice images and information.
Caterpillar ID
Hi,
Found this guy on our walk. He is about 4″ long or so and husky. Looks like a curled up green leaf. Has double horns near his head and a spike at the tail. He is very strong. Let him go in the garden. Hope it wasn’t a mistake. He went on his way.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Kathy
Hi Kathy,
It looks like you have a Four-horned Sphinx also known as the Elm Sphinx (Ceratomia amyntor). Your photo doesn’t really show the horns as pronounced as in other photos we have seen. It eats leaves from elms and basswoods, and is also reported from birches and cherries.
Unidentified Caterpillar
Hi!
I need help identifying this really neat caterpillar I found here in SW Michigan. It is about 2 1/2 inches long and seems somewhat similair to some larvea of the Antheraea family. I would like to try and raise it and was wondering if it needs to eat now and if so, what should I feed it?
Thanks,
Joanna
Sorry Joanna,
The best we can do is agree it is one of the Giant Silkworm Moth caterpillars, Saturniidae. It somewhat resembles a cecropia moth and it somewhat resembles a cynthia moth, but it doesn’t look exactly like either. We will keep trying to positively identify it.
black caterpillar with a red horn
We saw this caterpillar along side the road in British Columbia. I went through most of the sites that you’ve linked to on your page, but I think this guy’s out of range for those sites.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
Lea Ann
p.s., I also included a pretty clear picture of what I think is a Common Clear-Wing Moth… (Taken in Mayo, Yukon)
Hi Lea Ann,
WE have been trying unsuccessfully to properly identify your unknown black sphinx caterpillar with the red horn. We will continue to try. Your Hummingbird Clearwing Moth is a welcome addition to our site as well.
(01/01/2005) Ed. Note: We have just identified the black sphinx caterpillar thanks to this site run by Bill Oehlke. It is Hyles gallii, the Bedstraw Hawk Moth or Gallium Sphinx (wingspan approx. 75 mm). Hyles gallii ranges coast to coast in Canada and southward along the Rocky Mountains into Mexico. It is also widely distributed throughout Europe and Asia.
Do you have an id for this one?
Hi,
Checked through your website with great interest, but didn’t find my caterpillar there. This guy lived on a yellow blossom lupin branch this last Spring in Bodega Head (northern California above San Francisco). I’ve been unable to identify the pretty thing. Got any ideas? Sure would appreciate your help.
Thanks, Alice Steele (San Francisco)
Hi Alice,
The best we can do is tell you it is a Wooly Bear caterpillar, the larva of a Tiger Moth. Sorry it is so general.
Can you tell me if this caterpillar is a type of tussock moth? I’ve
looked at several caterpillars and can’t decide what it is exactly.
Ran across it in the woods near where we live that is primarly pine and
oak in Virginia. Saw one dangling and another was beginning to roll
itself up into a leaf. Hope you can help. This is a great website.
Marge Leitner
Hi Marge,
The Pale Tussock Moth or Banded Tussock Moth, Halysidota tessellaris, according to the Caterpillars of the Eastern Forest website, is: “Gray, dirty tan to yellow-brown with long paired white and black lashes on second and third thoracic segments. Food: oaks, willows, poplars, hickories, and many other forest and shade trees. Caterpillar: July to October”
what’s this caterpillar?
Hi, I found this guy eating my petunias. I’ve never seen one quite like it so I refrained from smooshing it. I’m happy to share my plants if it is something cool. What is it? I live in Southern Oregon. The caterpillar is approximately 1 inch long. It is a rosy red with a light pink or white stripe along both sides. Thank you,
Rebecca
Sorry Rebecca,
We don’t know what your caterpillar is. We suspect it is a butterfly and not a moth. It is a beautiful color, almost camoflauged on the petunias. You can raise it and see what emerges.
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Posted 07 September 2004
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Is this a picture of a Tomato bug? (The one on the right) We found it in the yard and have not checked if anymore exist in the garden.
Thanks Tina
Your tomatoes are safe Tina,
You have a photo of a Polyphemus Moth caterpillar. Caterpillars eat the leaves of many different trees, including chestnut, elm, hickory, maple, poplar, sycamore, alder, basswood, and beech. Adults, named for the Cyclops because of their eyespots, do not eat.
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