Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Caterpillars of many species can cause irritation by their hollow body hairs that envenom or detach easily, or can be poisonous if ingested. [5] Prior to investigations into Lonomia caterpillars, it was not known that caterpillars could produce toxins in sufficient quantities to kill a human.
The adult is a stout furry moth which holds its wings like a tent over the body, in the manner of the eggar moths (Lasiocampidae).The adult is larger than the oak processionary, Thaumetopoea processionea, has a crescent marking on the wings (unlike the pale eggar moth; the oak processionary has an indistinct marking), and is found in coniferous rather than broad-leaved forests.
Lonomia sp.. The genus Lonomia is a moderate-sized group of fairly cryptic saturniid moths from South America, famous not for the adults, but for their highly venomous caterpillars, which are responsible for a few deaths each year, [1] especially in southern Brazil, and the subject of hundreds of published medical studies.
These toxic species, such as the cinnabar moth (Tyria jacobaeae) and monarch (Danaus plexippus) caterpillars, usually advertise themselves with the danger colors of red, yellow and black, often in bright stripes (see aposematism). Any predator that attempts to eat a caterpillar with an aggressive defense mechanism will learn and avoid future ...
Effects from the poisonous bristles under their fur have been compared with a wasp or jellyfish sting. The Initial symptom of being stung by a puss caterpillar is usually just a painful skin ...
Caterpillar foraging Woolly Bear. This species is a generalist feeder, consuming many plant species, including herbs and trees. [1] Based on the caterpillars' wide range of food plants, this moth could be found almost anywhere that plants grow. [8]
Orgyia leucostigma, the white-marked tussock moth, is a moth in the family Erebidae.The species was first described by James Edward Smith in 1797. The caterpillar is very common especially in late summer in eastern North America, extending as far west as Texas, California, and Alberta.
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 ...