Post by trehopr1 on Oct 10, 2018 0:08:39 GMT
Today, I also had the express pleasure of finding a banded woolly bear caterpillar; the larval form of the Isabella tiger moth (Pyrrharctia isabella). These caterpillars (when mature in the fall) search for overwintering sites under bark or inside cavities of rocks or logs to spend the winter hidden from winters frosty onslaught. When spring arrives, woolly bears spin fuzzy cocoons and transform inside them into full grown moths which appear in mid-summer.
Typically, the bands at the ends of the caterpillar are black, and the one in the middle is brown or orange, giving the woolly bear its distinctive striped appearance. Here is how you "read" the caterpillar. Each caterpillar has 13 distinct segments of either rusty brown or black. The wider the rusty brown sections (or the more brown segments there are), the milder the coming winter will be. The more black there is, the more severe the winter. Such is the legend of the woolly bear !
As such it is probably the most recognizable caterpillar in North America (although the monarch caterpillar is a strong contender these days).
Other common names associated with these caterpillars are: Black-ended bear, and woolly worm (throughout the Southern states).
Typically, the bands at the ends of the caterpillar are black, and the one in the middle is brown or orange, giving the woolly bear its distinctive striped appearance. Here is how you "read" the caterpillar. Each caterpillar has 13 distinct segments of either rusty brown or black. The wider the rusty brown sections (or the more brown segments there are), the milder the coming winter will be. The more black there is, the more severe the winter. Such is the legend of the woolly bear !
As such it is probably the most recognizable caterpillar in North America (although the monarch caterpillar is a strong contender these days).
Other common names associated with these caterpillars are: Black-ended bear, and woolly worm (throughout the Southern states).
