Texas Gardening: SNAKEAPILLAR (link with pics), 1 by TexasPuddyPrint

TexasPuddyPrint wrote:
That will turn into a gorgeous Giant Swallowtail...or depending on where you live it might be a rare Ornythion Swallowtail. The caterpillars are extremely similar I have a hard time telling them apart.

The caterpillars won't harm your tree...well unless you have something like a thousand of them :o) They are very legarthic eaters...a big difference in eating styles if you've ever seen a Monarch caterpillar chow down! They won't harm you either if you pick them up. No need to be afraid of them.

I do hope you will raise them or at least leave them on your citrus tree to feed. Once they are big enough they will wander off to pupate and depending on he weather and season they will emerge in about ten days.

Remember only about 2% of the eggs a butterfly lays will ever make it to adulthood. Spiders, birds, wasp, lizards and all kinds of other predators make a meal out of them.

I don't find the osmetrium smell bothersome at all. I often use it to find caterpillars on my huge citrus trees. I'll run my hand over the branches and when I get a whiff of it I know I have caterpillars close at hand. I'll usually move them into a reptarium to raise and release.

~ Cat

This message was edited Apr 29, 2007 7:11 PM