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Project Noah Nature School
Parasarpa dudu
I would have much preferred to find this astonishing tentacled pompom-wielding caterpillar without its heavy burden of parasitoid wasp cocoons, but nature is a twisted malicious wonder. Most likely without it's terminal affliction, this caterpillar would not have been so easily spottable so we could bear witness to its splendour and its grisly demise. Firstly, this is the larva of the White Commodore (Parasarpa dudu, Nymphalidae). See the butterfly here..... http://www.flickr.com/photos/itchydogima... This individual is bearing braconid wasp (Braconidae) cocoons on its back which means the parasitic phase of the relationship is over but the caterpillar's future is limited. The course of events is as follows: braconid wasp eggs are laid on the host's skin. Larvae burrow inside the caterpillar, which at first continues to develop almost normally as the wasp larvae selectively devour non-essential tissue (after all it is essential that the host survives long enough for the wasp life cycle to be completed). They eventually stop feeding and cut holes in the host's skin in order to reach the outside. They pupate inside white cocoons spun on the host's skin. The caterpillar often dies before adult wasps emerge from cocoons.
Spotted on Feb 22, 2013
Submitted on Feb 25, 2013
32 Comments (1–25)
:)
This unfortunately caterpillar finally has a name. It is the larva of the White Commodore (Parasarpa dudu, Nymphalidae).
Thank you all for your comments. And that Darwin quote courtesy of John La Salle is very appropriate and profound.
As an update, I revisited the site this spotting yesterday, 5 days since taking the picture, and the poor caterpillar was in the same place, still alive and still burdened.
It has been demonstrated that the presence of the wasp larvae somehow manipulate the "brains" of their various victim hosts into 'playing safe' once again to prevent the caterpillar coming to grief before the wasp life cycle has been completed and all would be lost.
Great spotting and congratulations on SOTD!!!
Congratulations Sinobug!
Wonderful spotting - congratulations on your SOTD!
Awesome spotting, congratulations Sinobug!
Great capture Sinobug,congrats on the SOTD,thanks for sharing
Congratulations for SOTD! You have a lot of great spots. Enjoying going thru them.
Congratulations Sinobug !
Awesome spotting! Congratulations on another fantastic spotting of the day!
Congratulations Sinobug
Congratulations !
Congratulations and incredible find!
Congratulations Sinobug!
Congratulations!!
Congratulations Sinobug! What a find!
This is crazy, congrats on Spotting of the Day!
Congratulations sinobug. Well deserved.
amazing, congrats well deserved
Congrats Sinobug, this awesome photo has earned you another spotting of the day:
The amazing caterpillar will sadly never metamorphose into a butterfly or moth. Wasp larvae have completed their life cycle inside its body, miraculously keeping it alive before exiting their host to pupate externally.
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Incredible capture Sinobug!
In the workings of natural selection and evolution that we observe around us there is little indication of benevolence or perfection. Its survival without compassion really. I think most of us would have designed nature to be vegetarian at least. Still it is breathtakingly complex and stunningly awesome.
“I cannot persuade myself that a beneficent and omnipotent God would have designedly created parasitic wasps with the express intention of their feeding within the living bodies of caterpillars.”
- Charles Darwin
Great photo of this fascinating but morbid phenomenon. You can almost feel the texture of the cocoon..