Catapiller ??

Aguadulce

This strange looking catapiller was eating banana leaves in my garden.

Lord Vetinari

Lovely capture- amazing looking bug- assume it is a caterpillar of some type but very unusual looking !
Brian v.

Aguadulce

Lord Vetinari wrote:

Lovely capture- amazing looking bug- assume it is a caterpillar of some type but very unusual looking !
Brian v.

Thank you for the reply.

A better look at the head:

Awais Yaqub

Thats very cool looking Caterpillar ! and very nice photo

Art Scott

very cool looking.....Is that an electrical emission on the lower right side of the 'pillar????

Aguadulce

Awais Yaqub wrote:

Thats very cool looking Caterpillar ! and very nice photo

Thank you,

Art Scott wrote:

very cool looking.....Is that an electrical emission on the lower right side of the 'pillar????

I believe it was a piece of a feather, the caterpillars have a painful sting so I don't touch.

I made an inquiry to the Smithonian Tropical Research Institue and received the following:

"Your caterpillar ia an early stage "hag moth" larva (Phobetron hipparchia), it has stinging hairs (setae) When mature, it will look like the larva in the attached photograph. The adult male and adult female look very different from one another, as shown in the same photograph."

GOLDENORFE

good find, not seen a cat like that before!
phil

canon400d

GOLDENORFE wrote:

good find, not seen a cat like that before!
phil

An excellent capture and very interesting too especially now you have established all about it.
Regards
Bob