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Caterpillar ID please
Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back to my reference books! Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, Derbyshire, yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it up. Fairly active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) Grassy surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come from. http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ Thanks Mike [The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting] -- Michael J Davis <>< Some newsgroup contributors appear to have confused the meaning of "discussion" with "digression". <>< |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes > >Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back to >my reference books! > >Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, >Derbyshire, yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it >up. Fairly active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) >Grassy surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come >from. > >http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ > Fox moth. I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and conspicuous caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess what it was going to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most often to identify here! They don't hibernate until well into October and then emerge again for some more food in the spring. They eat several different moorland plants, including heather, bramble, bilberry, etc. -- Malcolm |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
Malcolm wrote...
> > In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J > Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >> >>Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back to my >>reference books! >> >>Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, Derbyshire, >>yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it up. Fairly >>active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) Grassy >>surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come from. >> >>http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ >> > Fox moth. > > I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and conspicuous > caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess what it was going > to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most often to identify here! They > don't hibernate until well into October and then emerge again for some > more food in the spring. They eat several different moorland plants, > including heather, bramble, bilberry, etc. I thought it would be obvious too but I couldn't find a good match in the Collins Caterpillar Field Guide. The photo is much more impressive and hairy than its painting in the guide. Good job we have a handy expert here online to sort us out! David |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
"David Lee" <davidlee_malvern@dont.use.this.bit.hotmail.com> wrote in message news:5I2dnZOBi8T_1JnYnZ2dnUVZ8sydnZ2d@eclipse.net. uk... > Malcolm wrote... >> >> In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael >> J Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >>> >>>Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back >>>to my reference books! >>> >>>Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, >>>Derbyshire, yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick >>>it up. Fairly active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 >>>am.) Grassy surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might >>>have come from. >>> >>>http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ >>> >> Fox moth. >> >> I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and >> conspicuous caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess >> what it was going to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most >> often to identify here! They don't hibernate until well into >> October and then emerge again for some more food in the spring. >> They eat several different moorland plants, including heather, >> bramble, bilberry, etc. > > I thought it would be obvious too but I couldn't find a good match > in the Collins Caterpillar Field Guide. The photo is much more > impressive and hairy than its painting in the guide. > > Good job we have a handy expert here online to sort us out! > > David I`ve found a cracking moth ID website at http://ukmoths.org.uk/thumbnail.php. The only problem is that I get side-tracked when looking through all the thumbnails. Kate |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
Malcolm <Malcolm@indaal.demon.co.uk> observed
> >In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J >Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >> >>Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back to >>my reference books! >> >>Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, >>Derbyshire, yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it >>up. Fairly active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) >>Grassy surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come from. >> >>http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ >> >Fox moth. > >I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and >conspicuous caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess what >it was going to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most often to >identify here! They don't hibernate until well into October and then >emerge again for some more food in the spring. They eat several >different moorland plants, including heather, bramble, bilberry, etc. > Thank you, Malcolm. Looked it up - very low key in my books one of which said feeds on heather. And since there's no heather in that area, excluded it as I scanned through. However, have recently ordered a new insect book from Amazon - so we'll test it on that - due this week. Can't recall ever having seen an imago. Mike [The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting] -- Michael J Davis <>< Some newsgroup contributors appear to have confused the meaning of "discussion" with "digression". <>< |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
David Lee <davidlee_malvern@dont.use.this.bit.hotmail.com> observed
>Malcolm wrote... >> >> In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J >> Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >>> >>>Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back to my >>>reference books! >>> >>>Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, Derbyshire, >>>yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it up. Fairly >>>active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) Grassy >>>surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come from. >>> >>>http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ >>> >> Fox moth. >> >> I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and conspicuous >> caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess what it was going >> to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most often to identify here! They >> don't hibernate until well into October and then emerge again for some >> more food in the spring. They eat several different moorland plants, >> including heather, bramble, bilberry, etc. > >I thought it would be obvious too but I couldn't find a good match in the >Collins Caterpillar Field Guide. The photo is much more impressive and >hairy than its painting in the guide. > >Good job we have a handy expert here online to sort us out! Indeed. And it doesn't even come across from Greenland! ;-) Mike [The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting] -- Michael J Davis <>< Some newsgroup contributors appear to have confused the meaning of "discussion" with "digression". <>< |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
In article <E6YYBDN4BGBFFwln@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >Malcolm <Malcolm@indaal.demon.co.uk> observed >> >>In article <ERaorTD1l+AFFwv6@trustsof.demon.co.uk.invalid>, Michael J >>Davis <?.?@trustsof.demon.co.uk> writes >>> >>>Oh dear, and there was I thinking it was obvious - until I got back >>>to my reference books! >>> >>>Help please in identifying caterpillar near summit of Mam Tor, >>>Derbyshire, yesterday 70mm long. Looked urticarious so didn't pick it >>>up. Fairly active in cool conditions (crossing footpath at 10.30 am.) >>>Grassy surroundings, so not obvious what food plant it might have come from. >>> >>>http://www.flickr.com/photos/watchman/239125729/ >>> >>Fox moth. >> >>I nearly didn't bother to look, because it is an abundant and >>conspicuous caterpillar of uplands and moorlands and I could guess >>what it was going to be! It is also the one that I'm asked most often >>to identify here! They don't hibernate until well into October and >>then emerge again for some more food in the spring. They eat several >>different moorland plants, including heather, bramble, bilberry, etc. >> > >Thank you, Malcolm. > >Looked it up - very low key in my books one of which said feeds on >heather. And since there's no heather in that area, excluded it as I >scanned through. > >However, have recently ordered a new insect book from Amazon - so we'll >test it on that - due this week. > >Can't recall ever having seen an imago. > They're just brown all over - with a couple of very thin stripes across the outer wings. They are sometimes very numerous after emerging - I've seen dozens at a time when walking over moorland. They are sometimes taken by male Merlins - the ground beneath one plucking post near a nest I visit most years can be littered with wings! -- Malcolm |
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Re: Caterpillar ID please
Malcolm <Malcolm@indaal.demon.co.uk> observed
> Re Fox Moth:- >> >>Thank you, Malcolm. >> >>Looked it up - very low key in my books one of which said feeds on >>heather. And since there's no heather in that area, excluded it as I >>scanned through. >> >>However, have recently ordered a new insect book from Amazon - so >>we'll test it on that - due this week. >> >>Can't recall ever having seen an imago. >> >They're just brown all over - with a couple of very thin stripes across >the outer wings. They are sometimes very numerous after emerging - I've >seen dozens at a time when walking over moorland. They are sometimes >taken by male Merlins - the ground beneath one plucking post near a >nest I visit most years can be littered with wings! > Thanks again. Mike [The reply-to address is valid for 30 days from this posting] -- Michael J Davis <>< Some newsgroup contributors appear to have confused the meaning of "discussion" with "digression". <>< |
