A worldwide community photographing and learning about wildlife
Project Noah Nature School
Datana Major
Oooh these horrid little beasts have devoured my pieris japonica! There are two massive writhing orbs of these nasty creatures at either end of the plant. If they see me approach, they rear up their front end with their legs curled at me. I assume this means don't touch them...
That is disgustingly awesome. They haven't reappeared. I suspect the hurricane blew them in last year.
Just as an FYI - the "green juice" is actually the caterpillar regurgitating the plant material it's been eating in an effort to scare you off. Lots of caterpillars will "throw up" on you when they're disturbed. :)
It is funny because I only have one pieris in my yard but lots of azaleas. I checked my azaleas and don't see a single caterpillar on them.
They do not bite, but they do spit green juice when you disturb them. Thank you for the help!
You can touch them if you need to. The best biological control for your bushes is to pull them off and drop them in a bucket of soapy water. Good luck to you and your plants!
Spotted on Aug 31, 2011
Submitted on Aug 31, 2011
