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Gonimbrasia belina is a species of emperor moth which is native to the warmer parts of southern Africa.Its large edible caterpillar, known as the mopane worm, madora, amacimbi “pigeon moth”, masonja or Seboko sa Mongana, feeds primarily but not exclusively on mopane tree leaves.
Plants contain toxins which protect them from herbivores, but some caterpillars have evolved countermeasures which enable them to eat the leaves of such toxic plants. In addition to being unaffected by the poison, the caterpillars sequester it in their body, making them highly toxic to predators. The chemicals are also carried on into the adult ...
Certain caterpillars eat plants that are toxic to both themselves and the parasite to cure themselves. [24] Drosophila melanogaster larvae also self-medicate with ethanol to treat parasitism. [25] D. melanogaster females lay their eggs in food containing toxic amounts of alcohol if they detect parasitoid wasps nearby. The alcohol protects them ...
The caterpillars are mostly found in oak trees or on the ground under them in late spring and early summer, and do not live on fences, walls, etc. as other caterpillars do. They have very long, white hairs contrasting markedly with shorter hairs. [1] The caterpillars of several other species may be mistaken for the oak processionary. [3]
The host plant selection is vital because it provides the food source for the young caterpillars. Females are known to have multiple broods, [ 17 ] typically up to two to three. [ 8 ] The newly hatched caterpillars will group together until they shed their skin—termed an instar for each shedding.
Cutworms are moth larvae that hide under litter or soil during the day, coming out in the dark to feed on plants. A larva typically attacks the first part of the plant it encounters, namely the stem, often of a seedling, and consequently cuts it down; hence the name cutworm. Cutworms are not worms, biologically speaking, but caterpillars.
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Its consumption of toxic plants makes it distasteful to most predators. An exception is the smooth-billed ani (Crotophaga ani), which tears the caterpillar apart to eat it, avoiding the gut containing the plant material. The caterpillar is also coated in barbed urticating hairs, which stick deeply in skin and cause irritation. If caught, the ...