inchworm ID?

Liz Day beebuzz at kiva.net
Mon Aug 27 11:21:56 EDT 2001


I saw some inchworms Sunday that were very striking.
SE of Indianapolis, central Indiana, by a creek in a low woods.
Eating that Polygonum that's a vine (P. scandens, climbing false buckwheat).

Looks like a normal inchworm, maybe an inch long, but very swollen right 
behind the true legs, like it swallowed a tiny tennis ball - actually it 
looks like a cobra inflating its head.   When it's disturbed, it rears back 
and (this is subtle) two little tiny stubby protuberances, that look a bit 
like another pair of legs, inflate from the underside of this swollen area 
.   Color black or tan; the sides have thin, sharply contrasting white 
markings like sideways V's, that meet over the back.  The enlarged front 
section is the most obvious part of its appearance.

What could this be?   It's not in the Caterpillars of Eastern Forests 
probably because the vine is not a forest tree.

There were several other neat kinds of caterpillars including some Lycaenid 
being attended by ants and multiple color versions of what I guess is the 
Virginia tiger moth.

Liz

---------------------------
Liz Day
3221 Merrick Ln.
Indianapolis, IN 46222  (Indiana, central USA)
317-924-0008
daylight at kiva.net
www.kiva.net/~daylight


 
 ------------------------------------------------------------ 

   For subscription and related information about LEPS-L visit:

   http://www.peabody.yale.edu/other/lepsl 
 


More information about the Leps-l mailing list