With this precaution in mine, we carefully scooped our new-found black caterpillar onto a piece of wood, where it immediately curled up into a ball and revealed what we suspected would be a useful field mark: bright red bands between its body segments (left). Caterpillar urtications can cause severe allergic responses and even death in some people, so-as we said-better NOT to handle hairy caterpillars unless you know they are harmless varieties. This process-called "urtication"-is analogous to a bee sting, except that the poison is trasmitted by a scratch rather than an injection. When specialized hollow hairs on these caterpillars are touched by us "thin-skinned" humans, one or more may break off, create a tiny scratch on our hand, and release a strong toxin into the nearly invisible wound. As a rule, it's best not to handle hairy caterpillars because some of them are poisonous.
The larva resembled one of those familiar brown-and-black Woolly Bears that supposedly forecast the severity of winter weather, but it was completely covered with quarter-inch black bristles that shined in the sun like patent leather. This week, for example, we discovered a 2" inch caterpillar (above) stretched out under a couple of loose boards. Lately we've made a concerted effort seek out, watch, and identify lepidopteran larval stages-all in the name of gaining better understanding of our local moth population. Here at Hilton Pond Center we're nearly as likely to see moth caterpillars as the moths themselves, especially since these voracious larvae are moving and eating almost around the clock. The majority of moths, on the other hand, are poorly known, primarily because they fly at night and are seldom seen-except for those that flutter around our porch lights or get into the woolens. Most folks can identify at least a few butterfly species and even install plants that attract these colorful insects to their yards. Humans and butterflies are adapted best for diurnal activity, so it's not surprising from spring through fall we often encounter butterflies on daytime excursions.
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