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unidentified caterpillar

Photo by Linda Raber
Published on Project Noah
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39.4845, -78.5536

Field Notes

Description:

Is this an owlet moth caterpillar? Its legs are yellow. Another pic to follow. I've never seen one like this and try as I might, can't ID.

Habitat:

Eastern woodland near the South Branch of the Potomac River.

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (2)
Linda Raber
Hi ForestDragon, Thanks for the info. You may be on to something. The larva I photographed was a beautiful turquoise with black spots; the one in the first link was greener. I know there can be quite a bit of variation in color within a species, however. "My" larva was shorter and fatter than the one in the first link. Thanks for the lead!
ForestDragon
Hi Linda! Interesting spotting. I think that this might be a Sawfly larva, which would explain why you haven't been able to ID it. I can't see the head in either image but body shape looks right. Here is one with similar coloration to yours: http://bugguide.net/node/view/13641 Sawflies are a type of wasp: http://bugguide.net/node/view/112 It can be very difficult to identify the species of the larvae but you might get lucky! I hope this helps. I have two Sawfly larvae in my spottings (though they are black). http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/15829522 http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/16159513
Photographed
PublishedOctober 31, 2012

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