SPECIAL CATERPILLAR SPECIES
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Chelepteryx collesi
huge: more than 10 cms long, |
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Uraba lugens
has a tall hat on its head, |
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Plesanemma fucata
has a spike on its head, |
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Polyura sempronius
has four spikes on its head, |
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Euproctis melanosoma
black and hairy, with 2 red knobs on the tail, |
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Spodoptera litura
smooth, dark brown, 4 yellow spots on thorax, |
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Ochrogaster lunifer
walks in precession, |
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Coequosa triangularis
green with 2 black knobs on its tail, |
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Theretra oldenlandiae
black, orange spots, wiggly tail spine, eats Balsam, |
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Endoxyla leucomochla
Wijuti (or Witchetty) Grub. |
FAMILY IDENTIFICATION
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Big red rump:
Day-Flying Moths AGARISTINAE |
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Everts stinging hairs when disturbed:
Spitfires LIMACODIDAE. |
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Carries a silk cocoon around, often with sticks or leaves glued to it:
Bagmoths PSYCHIDAE |
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Smooth with a pointed horn on the tail:
Hawk moths SPHINGIDAE |
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Smooth, hides by day, destroys lawns and crops at night:
Cutworms and Armyworms NOCTUIDAE |
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Hairy, especially with four tussocks on the back:
LYMANTRIIDAE |
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Just hairy:
ARCTIIDAE , ANTHELIDAE , NOTODONTIDAE |
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Smooth and walks in a looper fashion:
GEOMETRIDAE , CATOCALINAE , PLUSIINAE |
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Some Caterpillars are easy to identify because they have some unique characteristic, but most are rather similar to each other. Most taxonomy has been performed using the adult forms, so the only sure way to determine their species is to rear them through to the adult butterfly or moth, and then identify that.Some caterpillars can be identified to the individual species.
Some can only be identified easily to the family.
Some are not true Caterpillars at all.If you cannot get enough information from the
rest of this page, please feel free to contact us,
and tell us:
- country (not obvious from email!),
- state or province or area,
- length and diameter,
- colour and description,
- circumstances in which it was found,
- possible foodplants, and
- if at all possible: a photograph of it.Please note that we don’t know much about non-Australian species.
NON-CATERPILLARS
Some insect larvae look like Caterpillars but are the larvae of insects from other orders. They differ from the larvae of Lepidoptera (true caterpillars) in only having six legs, and not sixteen (the six true legs plus an extra ten prolegs) which most Caterpillars have.
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