This thing about two and half inches long rolled out of a pile of chips yesterday and looks dangerous . Spikes all over . After I took these pics , and saw them on puter , they were so fuzzy , I went back out and couldn't find him . I've been pulling some weeds out by the roots and scared I'll get a handfull of this monstrosity . What is it and are the spines poison ?
Any caterpillar that large in your area is apt to be in the family Saturniidae (giant silk moths), but the image is too fuzzy to be certain (it appears that your camera focused on the background rather than on the subject you intended). Some, but by no means all, caterpillars in this family have spines/hairs that can cause a painful skin rash.
Thanks, I don't want to touch him . I already know what saddlebacks are , ouch for hours .
