CLOSED: Are these caterpillars?

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bebop2 Van Etten, NY(Zone 5a) Sep 03, 2009

There must have been 30 of these strange little creatures, each about 1/2 inch, on some milkweed. Does anyone know who they are and if they are friend or foe? I'll post 4 photos.
#1

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bebop2 Van Etten, NY(Zone 5a) Sep 03, 2009

#2

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bebop2 Van Etten, NY(Zone 5a) Sep 03, 2009

#3 A closeup

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bebop2 Van Etten, NY(Zone 5a) Sep 03, 2009

#4

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MaypopLaurel Cleveland,GA/Atlanta, GA(Zone 7b) Sep 03, 2009

Oh, those look scary! I'm originally from south FL where we had saddleback caterpillars. These look similar. Don't touch until someone lets you know otherwise, but I bet those "brushes" will sting like crazy.

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claypa West Pottsgrove, PA(Zone 6b) Sep 03, 2009

They're Milkweed Tussock Moth caterpillars, Euchaetes egle:

http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/go/2059/

I like having them around, but I have a lot of milkweeds and don't really notice (or care) if one is chewed up.

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bebop2 Van Etten, NY(Zone 5a) Sep 03, 2009

Thanks, Claypa!

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