Caterpillars are crawling, worm-like insect larvae. They are absolutely different sizes and flowers, may be naked or covered with fluffy hairs. One thing unites them - all of them someday turn into beautiful butterflies. However, the appearance of caterpillars can also surprise and impress. Description and name of caterpillar species can be found in this article.

What are they?

Unlike worms, with which they are constantly compared, caterpillars are not an independent group of animals. These are insect larvae - one of the forms of development of Lepidoptera, or butterflies. This stage occurs after the "egg" stage and can last from a couple of weeks to several years. Then she becomes a chrysalis and only then an adult.

The body of all types of caterpillars consists of a head, 3 thoracic and 10 abdominal segments. The eyes are on the side of the head. They have many limbs. In the region of the thoracic segments there are three pairs of legs, on the belly there are about five.

Caterpillars are rarely completely naked. Their body is covered with single or very dense hairs arranged in bundles. Many species of caterpillars have raised cuticle outgrowths that form denticles, granules, and spines.

From the moment they hatch from the egg, the caterpillar begins to change. Often individuals of larvae of the same species, but different ages, differ externally. As they grow, they molt from two (miner caterpillar) to forty (cloth moth) times.

Butterfly larvae have a special saliva. When exposed to air, it hardens to form silk. People have not disregarded this ability and have been breeding caterpillars for more than a century to obtain valuable fibers. Predatory species are also used in pest control in vegetable gardens, but herbivorous species can cause damage to the farm.

Types of caterpillars and butterflies

Lepidoptera insects are distributed throughout the planet, but only in those places where there is flowering vegetation. They are rarely found in the cold polar regions, lifeless deserts and bald highlands. Not too many of them temperate latitudes, but the tropics have the greatest diversity of species.

But how to determine the type of caterpillars? First of all, attention should be paid to color, size, number of legs, length of hairs and other features specific to each species. Caterpillars grow in length from a few millimeters to 12 centimeters. Their coloration often does not resemble the color of the butterfly they turn into, therefore, experience and relevant knowledge are needed to recognize them. For example, the larva of a large harpy is light green, and the adult is grayish-brown, the larvae of yellow lemongrass are bright green.

To understand what kind of caterpillar is in front of you, observing its nutrition will help. Many of them (cabbage, bear, swallowtail, polyxena) are phytophages and eat flowers, leaves and fruits of plants. Woodworms, castnias, glass-boxes feed exclusively on wood and grass roots. Real moths and some types of bagworms eat fungi and lichens. Some caterpillars prefer wool, hair, horny substances, wax (carpet and clothes moths, moths), and predators are rare, such as scoops, pigeons, and moths.

Caterpillars in Russia

Our regions are not as rich in insects as hot tropical belts. But even in Russia there will be several hundred species of caterpillars. Fatheads, pigeons, nymphalids, whites, sailboats, rhyodinids and other orders are common here.

A typical representative of whites is cabbage. She lives all over Eastern Europe, eastern Japan and North Africa. Butterflies of this species are white, with black wings at the tips and two black dots. Their caterpillars are yellow-green with black warts all over their bodies. These are well-known pests that feed on cabbages and cabbage leaves, horseradish, swede.

The alkynoy sailboat lives mainly in Japan, Korea and China. In Russia, caterpillars of the species are found only in Primorsky Krai, and then in its southern part. They live near rivers and lakes where aristolochia grows. Butterflies lay their eggs on this plant, and the caterpillars then feed on their leaves. Alcinous caterpillars are brown with white segments in the middle, the body is covered with teeth. Both adult and larval forms of insects are poisonous, so no one is in a hurry to hunt them.

Brazhnik is one of the most known species. Blind hawks are a rare species. Their butterflies are dark brown in color, and the larvae are light green with red spiracles and white stripes on the sides. Caterpillars appear in July, they have a black horn on the back of the body at the end. They feed on the leaves of willows, poplars and birches and pupate in August.

poisonous species

Caterpillars often serve as food for other animals. In order not to become someone's food, they have many adaptations. Some species use a protective or repellent color, while others secrete a secret with an unpleasant odor. Some of them adopted poison.

Scales, hairs and needles hidden under the skin of some caterpillars can cause lepidopterism or caterpillar dermatitis. It is manifested by inflammation, swelling, itching and redness of the contact points and can have serious consequences. Poisonous are the larvae of the oak, gypsy and marching silkworm, megalopygi operakulus, hickory bear, Saturnia io, godwort bear, etc.

One of the most dangerous is the Lonomia caterpillar. It is found only in South America. Poisoning her secret even has its own name - lonomiasis. Contact with lonomia obliqua and lonomia achelous can result in severe internal bleeding and death. Caterpillars live on fruit trees, and plantation workers often become their “victims”.

Peacock-eye atlas

These butterflies are considered one of the largest in the world. Their wingspan reaches about 25 centimeters. They are common in India, China, countries and islands South-East Asia. Their caterpillars are thick and grow up to twelve centimeters long. bluish green on early stages, they become snow-white with time. The body is covered with thick hairy needles, from small hairs on them it seems that the caterpillars are covered with dust or snow. They exude a strong fagara silk, and their torn cocoons are sometimes used as purses or cases.

Lilac hawk

A large number of caterpillar species are green. They feed on plants, and this color helps to camouflage themselves with the environment. Caterpillars of privet or lilac hawkweed are painted in light green color. On the sides they have short diagonal stripes of white and black, and next to them there is one red dot.

Hawk hawk larvae are thick and reach a length of 9-10 centimeters. A white and black outgrowth resembling a horn sticks out in the back of the back of the caterpillars. They live in Western Europe, China, Japan, the European part of Russia and in the south Far East, in the Caucasus, southern Siberia and d Kazakhstan. They feed on jasmine, barberry, elderberry, viburnum, currant. They become caterpillars from July to September, and then winter twice as pupae.

Apollo Parnassus

Black species of caterpillars in nature are not very common. This color boasts a peacock eye, grass cocoon, Parnassian Apollo. The last species is named after Greek god Arts, Apollo. These butterflies live in Europe and Asia, are found in Southern Siberia, Chuvashia, Mordovia, Moscow region. They love dry and sunny valleys located at an altitude of 2000-3000 thousand meters.

Adult caterpillars of Apollo Parnassus are painted in deep black with bright red dots and blue warts on the sides. Behind the head of the larva is an osmetrium - a gland in the form of small horns. Usually it is hidden under the skin and protrudes at the moment of danger, releasing a substance with an unpleasant odor. Caterpillars feed on stonecrop and juveniles and appear only in good sunny weather.

Clothes or room moth

This type of caterpillar gives a lot of trouble in the house. They eat cereals, flour, silk and woolen fabrics, furniture upholstery. Adult individuals - butterflies - are harmful only because they can lay eggs. It is caterpillars that cause all the main damage to things, devouring everything they find.

Their bodies are almost transparent and covered with thin beige-brown skin. Among the caterpillars, they are considered the smallest, the size of the larvae varies from a millimeter to one centimeter. In the larval stage, they stay from a month to two and a half years, during which time they manage to shed up to 40 times. Moths live in the USA, Australia, Europe, Southeast Asia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe and many other regions.

Akraga koa, or "marmalade" caterpillar

Amazing caterpillars of this species look like something extraterrestrial. Their transparent-silver body seems to be made of jelly. Due to which they are called "marmalade" or "crystal". Their body is covered with cone-shaped processes, on the tips of which there are orange dots. Caterpillars reach only three centimeters in length. They are sticky to the touch, and the substances that secrete their glands are saturated with poison.

The insect lives in the Neotropics - a region covering the South and part Central America. You can meet him in Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, etc. The caterpillar feeds on the leaves of mango trees, coffee and other plants.

Swallowtail

Swallowtail is another insect named after the hero of mythology. This time it is an ancient Greek doctor. About 40 subspecies of swallowtails are known. All of them are very colorful both at the adult stage and during the development of larvae. They are distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Found in North Africa North America throughout Europe except Ireland. IN mountainous areas can climb to heights from 2 to 4.5 kilometers.

Swallowtail caterpillars are born twice a season: in May and August, but they are in the state of larvae for only a month. As they grow up appearance changes a lot. At first they are black with red dots and a white spot on the back. Over time, the coloring becomes light green, and black stripes and red dots are placed on each segment, white color is present only on the limbs. They also have a hidden bright orange osmetrium.

Many of them are ready to do anything to protect themselves and their food from predators.

Their brightness most often indicates toxicity, and the hairs and spines contain a toxic cocktail.

Here are a few beautiful but dangerous caterpillars from which it is best to stay away.


Caterpillars (photo)

Caterpillar-coquette looks like? like a miniature fluffy animal. However, as soon as you touch it, an unpleasant surprise awaits you.

Poisonous spikes hidden under her "fur" release poison, causing severe throbbing pain. , which can give into the armpit,five minutes after contact with the caterpillar. Red erymatous spots may appear at the site of contact. Other symptoms include: headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal discomfort, lymph node involvement, sometimes shock or shortness of breath.

The pain usually subsides after an hour, and the spots disappear after a few days. However, when hit a large number poison, symptoms can last up to 5 days.

2. Saddle caterpillar (Sibine stimulea)


© JasonOndreicka/Getty Images

The saddle caterpillar attracts attention with its bright coloration, and believe me, you better stay away from it. Its fleshy horns are covered with hairs that secrete poison.

Touching them will cause bee sting-like pain, swelling, nausea, and rash which will last for several days.

Types of caterpillars

3. Caterpillar "burning rose" (Parasa indetermina)


The caterpillar "burning rose" reaches a length of only 2.5 cm and is distinguished by bright colors. But besides her yellow and red spots, her prickly tubercles protruding from different sides attract the most attention.

The tips on these bumps, as you might guess, release poison. If you touch one of them, the ends will break off and you will have skin irritation.

Euclea delphinii)


This caterpillar is not as dangerous to humans, although touching it will still lead to rashes. This is due to the spiny tubercles located on the back and sides.

As a rule, these caterpillars live on oaks, willows, as well as beech, cherry, maple and other deciduous trees.

5. Caterpillar of the cross bear (Tyria jacobaeae)


© Rod Hill/Getty Images

Some caterpillars acquire toxicity through the plants they eat. And this also applies to the caterpillars of the bear cross, which feed on the poisonous crosswort.

They eat so much of this plant that in New Zealand, Australia and North America they are used to control the growth of the ragwort. This plant is deadly cattle and horses, and pose a health hazard to humans.

If you are susceptible to caterpillar hairs, touching them may cause urticaria, atopic bronchial asthma, renal failure and cerebral hemorrhage.

Caterpillars crawl (video)

6. Caterpillars of the marching silkworm (Thaumetopoea pityocampa)


© sonsam / Getty Images

Caterpillars of the marching silkworm live in groups in large silk nests high in the pines.

They follow each other from the nest to the pine needles in search of food. And as you may have guessed, contact with them is dangerous. They are covered with thousands of tiny harpoon-shaped hairs that cause severe skin irritation when touched.

7. Caterpillar "hiding in a bag" (Ochrogaster lunifer)


Just like the caterpillars of the marching silkworm, these representatives live in groups in a silk bag, getting out at night and following each other in search of food. However, the danger from them is greater.

In South America, they pose a threat to health. The poison that is in their bristles is powerful anticoagulant. This means that if you inadvertently touch them, you risk bleeding from a small cut or internal bleeding.

8. Caterpillar Saturnia io (Automeris io)


© Damocean/Getty Images

This caterpillar lives in Canada and the USA, and although it looks like a charming baby with green spiked pom-poms, remember that they are only to be admired.

As tiny as their thorns may seem, the poison they contain can cause painful itching and even dermatitis.

9. Witch moth caterpillar (Phobetron pithecium)


If it seemed to you that the coquette caterpillar looked rather unusual, admire this furry creature. The "witch moth" caterpillar, also called the "slug monkey", is often found in orchards.

People have varying susceptibility to these caterpillars, and in some people they cause unpleasant symptoms, including itching and rash.

10. Hickory Bear Caterpillar (Lophocampa caryae)


© WillieC / Getty Images

It seems as if these caterpillars are dressed in winter fur coats. Most of the hairs that cover their body are fairly harmless, however they do have four long black hairs on the front and back that should be avoided.

Touching them leads to rashes and more serious health problems, in case of hair getting into the eyes. In addition, they are also bite.

poisonous caterpillars

11. Lazy Clown Caterpillar (Lonomia obliqua)


This caterpillar of the peacock-eye butterfly can safely be called a killer caterpillar. Her thorns are filled with coagulant poison - anticoagulant which can lead to the death of a person.

Light touching of these caterpillars can lead to headaches, fever, vomiting, and if left untreated, internal bleeding kidney failure and hemolysis.

Their venom is so powerful that scientists are studying it in hopes of developing a drug that prevents blood clots.

12. White cedar moth caterpillar (leptocneria reducta)


This caterpillar already inspires fear with its appearance. The hairs of this tiny crawling "cactus" can cause an allergic itching reaction in some people.

In addition, the caterpillars themselves live large groups, swarming on the tree at the same time, and eating every single leaf before moving on.

Hemileuca maia)


One look at this caterpillar should discourage you from touching it. It is covered with hollow spines attached to a poison sac, and touching it will not only cause itching and burning, but also lead to nausea.

They live mainly on oaks and willows from spring to mid-summer.

Orgyia leucostigma)


© ognoc / Getty Images

This caterpillar is easy to spot because of the red head, black back and yellow stripes on the sides. Except that this caterpillar stings unpleasantly, it is considered a pest of trees, eating everything woody in its path.

But try to remove it from the power source, and you will not be in trouble.

15. Carnivorous caterpillars

While these caterpillars won't kill you, they do eat other insects, which is pretty unusual for a typical vegetarian caterpillar menu.

And remember, if the caterpillar has thorns or hairs, it is better not to touch it, as most likely it can be poisonous!

A caterpillar is one of the stages in the development of a butterfly.

Before becoming a beautiful butterfly or moth, it is in the larva or caterpillar stage. The life of a caterpillar is very short, but very interesting.

Description, characteristic

A caterpillar is the larva of any insect from the Lepidoptera order. The sizes of the caterpillars are different: it can be from a few millimeters to 15 cm. Touching some of them is life-threatening. They are poisonous.

The body of a caterpillar has a head, breast and abdomen. There are several pairs of limbs on the chest and abdomen. The whole body has several rings separated by grooves. Pulling up the rings, the caterpillar moves and moves its paws.

The caterpillar breathes through the stigma. There are several on the body. The head and chest are hard shelled. The rest of the body is soft, loose. The head is formed from several rings fused together. The shape of the head can be round, rectangular, core. The parietal parts can protrude forward and even form "horns".

The oral apparatus of caterpillars is highly developed. They can chew through any materials and get their own food with the help of external jaws. Inside there is an apparatus for chewing food with salivary glands. The eyes have a simple structure. There are several pairs of eyes on the head. Sometimes merged into one large eye. The entire body of the caterpillar is covered with hairs, scales, warts and other protrusions.


Types of caterpillars

  • There are as many species of caterpillars as there are species of butterflies and other Lepidoptera.
  • Cabbage butterfly caterpillar. It grows up to 3-4 cm. It has a yellow-green color with black spots on the back and long white hairs.
  • Surveyor. It looks like a thin brown twig. The limbs are not developed, it moves with "loops".
  • Big harpy. It reaches a size of 6 cm, has a green color. There is a purple spot on the back. There is a pink frame around the head. The limbs and horns on the body are striped black and white. When defending, it shoots out a caustic substance.
  • Peacock-eyes. Most big representative. Grows up to 12cm. has a blue-green color. Throughout the body, instead of hairs, there are outgrowths in the form of horns.
  • Bear caterpillar. It is black and yellow in color and has tufts of hairs.
  • Silk caterpillar. Any caterpillar can produce silk, but only the silkworm was domesticated by man several centuries ago. The caterpillar has a name silkworm. She has color white with many blue warts. At the end of the cycle, it changes color to yellow. The caterpillar develops and lives for about a month. While pupating, it spins a cocoon of threads up to 1500 m long. Color can be white, pink, yellow, green. To obtain natural silk, the chrysalis is kept for a couple of hours at a temperature of 100C. This temperature makes it easier to unwind the cocoon and use silk in production.

poisonous caterpillars

Coloring allows you to distinguish a poisonous caterpillar from a “peaceful” caterpillar. The brighter the color. The more likely that the caterpillar is poisonous. Contact with it for a person can cause a tooth, redness of the skin, shortness of breath, various pains and develop diseases.

  • Caterpillar coquette. Lives in Mexico. Very similar to a hamster. Fluffy brown beauty 2-3cm long. contact may cause chest pain, shortness of breath.
  • Saddle caterpillar. It has a bright color: the back is poisonous green and a large brown spot in the middle. The head and the end of the abdomen are brown with thick horns. There are hard hairs on the body. At the ends of these hairs there is a strong poison.
  • Lazy cleaver. Lives in Uruguay and Mozambique. The short length of the caterpillar is 3-4 cm. It has a black and white color with green tufts of hard milky-green hairs. Her poison can break nervous system cause bleeding of internal organs.
  • Burning rose. The main color is yellow, has red and blue stripes. Thick horns have spikes with poison. Upon contact, the spikes break off, and a rash appears on the skin.

Caterpillar development

Its development can last very quickly, or it can drag on for several decades. Hatching from an egg, a caterpillar undergoes several stages. Some of them are accompanied by significant changes, molting and other metamorphoses. The caterpillar itself grows and reaches adult size.

Some species make several molts and change color. This is typical for caterpillars. silkworm. At the end of their life span, they look for a place to pupate and prepare their home.

caterpillar stinging rose photo

Caterpillars molt, they are characterized by molting. Depending on the species, the caterpillar can molt from 2 to 40 times. Most often, during its life span, the caterpillar molts 4-5 times. The record holder for the number of molts is a mole. She can shed up to 40 times, with females doing it even more often.

Caterpillars - miners shed the least. Only 2 times. The reasons for molting may be the tightness of the already grown larvae in the old body. According to scientists, molting is accompanied by the fact that respiratory system does not grow with the caterpillar and only changes with new "skin". In the head of the larva there is a pheromone, which gives signals to shed the skin.

Where do caterpillars live?

The limited mobility of the caterpillar does not allow them to move quickly and change their habitat. Most often, caterpillars live on the ground, leaves, plants. Some species live underwater. Depending on the lifestyle, secretive caterpillars and openly moving ones are distinguished. Hidden species include those who practically do not appear on the surface of the earth, but are located in the crust, underground.

They are divided into the following representatives:

  • Listoverty. They live in the leaves of trees, making a tubular house.
  • Carpophages. They live in the fruits of plants, berries.
  • Xylophages. They live inside tree trunks, under the bark.
  • Underground larvae live underground
  • Water caterpillars live in water bodies.
  • Miners. They live in roots, leaves, buds.
  • Future butterflies lead an open lifestyle. They live where they feed: on the leaves of flowers, plants.

What do caterpillars eat?

Most caterpillars are vegetarians. They prefer plant leaves, roots, flowers. Some make their way to their treats and lay their eggs there. These pests include moths. She loves honey. At night, the moth sneaks into the hive and lays eggs in the combs. The hatched larvae devour wax and honey.

In general, the caterpillar is very voracious. To become a chrysalis, she must gain mass. An apple moth caterpillar can gobble up all the leaves on an apple tree and not “eat up”. If there are no other trees nearby, it pupates even when "hungry".

There are also exotic food depending on the type:

  • The cork moth feeds on algae and fungus in wine barrels and vats of beer;
  • Moth caterpillars live on the body of a sloth and eat its algae, which grow on wool;
  • Fireflies eat the building material of ants - paper;
  • Caterpillars of scoops and pigeons eat ants, while the ants love the juice that it produces and live together;
  • Predatory caterpillars feed on small insects and other caterpillars.

Fighting caterpillars: means and methods

Caterpillars can harm a person's crop and devour his land. To save the crop, some control methods are used. Sometimes uses all in turn:

  • Collection of caterpillars. Every day, collect colonies of caterpillars, destroy pupae and eggs.
  • Chemicals. Industry and botanists create various formulations to preserve the crop and get rid of unwanted visitors. This way is good in the beginning. After the caterpillars get used to the drugs.
  • In fields and large areas, birds do this work. They love to eat caterpillars. By building birdhouses, you can get rid of non-friends.
  • Infusions of herbs and leaves. Tops of tomato, tobacco, chamomile, wormwood, herbs, potatoes have good efficiency.

  • Man eats caterpillars throughout his existence. More than 20 species of caterpillars are consumed in food
  • Medicinal tinctures are prepared from caterpillar pupae of some species.
  • The Chinese use caterpillars infected with a special fungus in treatment and Tibetan medicine.
  • The caterpillar blends in perfectly with environment
  • All caterpillars produce silk during their lifetime.
  • In the Arctic, the caterpillar lives up to 13 years, falling into hibernation before each winter.

The caterpillar takes its place in nature. Her life seems imperceptible and short. But without her we never saw beautiful butterflies. Many species feed on caterpillars, especially birds. An unusual color allows her to disguise herself or warn the enemy about the threat.

Moth butterfly caterpillars inflict great harm garden and horticultural crops, eating everything in its path. Because of their appearance, they are difficult to detect and, due to their peculiarities, their second name is land surveyors. The article deals with appearance caterpillars, what they eat and how to deal with them.

Surveyor caterpillars or moth:

What does it look like?

Caterpillars "surveyors" are thin and long, have a camouflage color and are very difficult to detect due to the fact that the color depends on the plant on which they live and feed.

Also, there are practically no villi on the body of these caterpillars, and when the moths freeze in one position, stretching either to the side or up, they become practically indistinguishable from twigs. This is how they camouflage themselves from birds. Strongly developed muscles and a pair of strong abdominal limbs help them to take this position.

Like all caterpillars, the body of these pests consists of segments. The peculiarity is that they do not have developed abdominal limbs located on segments 7 and 9 ( false legs) and the caterpillar moves, t as if measuring the surface with a span:

  • Strengthened by the chest limbs;
  • It bends in a loop;
  • Moves false legs to chest;
  • Then it clings to these pectoral limbs;
  • Stretches the body in front and again fastens with the chest.

Another adaptation of the pest is that they are attached with a thread to the surface on which they crawl, and if, for example, a caterpillar is blown away by a gust of wind, it rises back along this thread.

caterpillar varieties

There are over 23,000 species of moths. The most common in Russia and the CIS countries are:

  • Winter moth. A transparent caterpillar with a greenish tint, which has one dark longitudinal stripe along the back and three lighter lateral ones. It has five growth stages and four molts. It pupates in June in the soil under a tree, and in August butterflies come out of the chrysalis, which cannot fly and climb the tree.
  • Pine. It has a green color and five lateral white lines. pupates late autumn in a bed under a tree.
  • gooseberry moth. Light caterpillar with yellow and black patches.
  • Ripped off. Has a brown or yellow color. A lateral yellow stripe runs across the body, and brown spots may be present.

Surveyor:

What plants are affected?

These moth caterpillars eat all plants in a row. As for the above types, they like to eat

  • Coniferous plantations. This is a favorite delicacy of the pine moth, which eats needles from July to October.
  • Gooseberry, currant and other garden bushes. This is the food of the gooseberry moth.
  • Berry and fruit trees are devoured, skinned and winter moth.

Struggle

To combat these pests, the following measures are used:

1.Biological:

  • Enemies of moths are ichneumons and tahini flies. They eat moth caterpillars. Therefore, it is necessary to create conditions for the attraction and reproduction of beneficial insects. They can be attracted by the nectars of the testes of the umbrella family (carrots, celery, dill, etc.);
  • Treat plants in the spring before flowering with bacterial insecticides;
  • Attracting sparrows and tits to the garden.

2. Agrotechnical:

  • Digging the soil at a depth of 15 cm in August to destroy the pupae of the winter moth;
  • Loosening the surface layer of the earth from mid-September;
  • Autumn collection and destruction of leaves.

3.Mechanical;

  • In September, trapping paper belts smeared with special glue are placed on the trunks of bushes and trees. This will help to catch female butterflies and at the end of November it is necessary to remove the device and burn it;

Crushing the caterpillars in the morning on the fabric laid under the plant and further burning the pest.

4.Chemical:

  • Treatment with a solution of oleocuprite and DNOC in the spring before the snow completely melts;
  • Preparation No. 30;
  • Before flowering, spray with a solution of karbofos or arsenic.

Caterpillars "surveyors" are quite harmful and difficult to detect, but noticing that the plant is being eaten, you need to start pest control measures.

Butterfly larvae - caterpillars - are distinguished by a variety of shapes and colors. And anyone who does not feel disgust for the caterpillars can enjoy watching these amazing creatures and, perhaps, learn something new for themselves. This is especially true for pupation, because it's one thing to just know about life cycle insects, and the other is to see firsthand the process of transformation of one creature into another.

hawks

hawks (Sphingidae) - a family of butterflies large or medium size. The body is powerful, often conically pointed; wings - narrow elongated span from 30 to 175 mm.

For some unknown reason, with an aunt of filing, most of his life he called hawks Bobk A mi. What the beans such - it is not clear, except for the aunt, this word has not been heard from anyone, and Yandex only finds a story of the same name by Dostoevsky for such a request.

Caterpillars are large, beautiful, usually brightly colored with contrasting stripes and false eyes. On the tail they have a characteristic horn.

The pupae of most hawks also have horns.

Next, we will talk about the history of pupation of two caterpillars found simultaneously in our area and identified as larvae. hawks: wine And fake. Actually, it was not difficult to determine them, since it is known that hawk hawk caterpillars are very picky and selective towards their food plants, therefore, if a caterpillar is found on grapes, then it can be argued with a high probability that wine hawk hawk should come out of it.

So, the first story, happy ...

Wine hawk (Deilephila elpenor)

The caterpillar was found eating grape leaves. She was fat, resilient and green, with a horn and four false eyes in the front.


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She behaved actively, in captivity she did not refuse food. I also didn't mind taking pictures in different poses. Click on the pictures - they have a lot of details!



But a couple of days later, it disappeared. Gently turning over the leaves piled on the bottom of the aquarium, I discovered a certain conglomerate: the leaves were clearly glued together. In the depths of the shelter, the strangely altered body of a caterpillar, covered with mucus, lay motionless.

After a day or two, I decided to see what happened in the house of leaves. As soon as I started to rake them, I felt something vigorously twitch inside. The leaves were glued together well, but what could one poor caterpillar oppose to the destructive power of the human mind?

For no one, I think, the fact that the leaves were hiding chrysalis.


The anterior part of the pupa is completely rigid, the posterior part consists of three movably connected segments and ends with a horn. When the chrysalis is nervous, it can beat intensely, frightening the offender and jumping from place to place:

Here's what struck me the most. Next to the pupa in the leaves lay the blackened and withered head and the front part of the body of the former caterpillar with six horny legs. I never thought about the fact that when turning into a chrysalis, the caterpillar discards head!(“What does she think about ???” - an idiotic question arises, from which, however, another follows: “Do caterpillars think in principle?”)

The idea for the demotivator is born by itself: “Don't be a larva! Don't lose your head!"

Now it remains only to put the chrysalis in a secluded cool place, and perhaps in the spring I will be able to observe the most exciting stage of transformation: the birth of a butterfly.

Added after 6 months: it was possible to observe the birth of a butterfly, however, a little earlier than expected. Details and photos - by clicking on the picture:

Medium wine hawk - the one that hatched from me six months later.

And now the second story, tragic ...

Lime hawkweed (Mimas tiliae)

This caterpillar was caught on a linden, and when caught it was about the same green color as our previous hero. However, by the time of the photo shoot, she noticeably changed color to green-yellow. If I had read about this caterpillar earlier, I would have understood that it was already about to pupate - in the lime hawk hawk, this is preceded by a change in color.

If the caterpillar were immediately planted in the leaves and not touched again, then, perhaps, I would now still have a chrysalis of lime hawk hawk. But I did not allow the poor creature to calmly fulfill my biological program. While transplanting, while photographing ...