I found this one today on one of my tomato plants. On it rear end there is a REAL spiky thorn! I touched it with a small twig and it was hard. I hope photo is clear enough.
What kind of caterpillar?
Tomato Hornworm larvae of Hawkmoth and Spinx moth. I read this in gardenweb.
It definitely is a tomato pest..I had several "baby" ones decimate my cherry tomato plant then I found a HUGE one ( probably the "mother") on my heirloom tomato..so it's now "history" as I did not want it to ruin my heirlooms!!
i call those "smooshed under my shoe !
Poor moths. They get no respect at all. Even beautiful ones like the hawkmoths. Everyone wants to kill their caterpillars. One solution is to plant an extra tomato plant or two just for them. If you find a hawkmoth caterpillar feeding on "your" tomato plant then just move it over to "their" plant. That way these beautiful future moths (and important pollinators) are allowed to live.
Dale Clark
Dallas County Lepidopterists' Society
www.dallasbutterflies.com
Great idea.
well, I actually could not get myself to kill it, so tossed it over the fence into ivy. I guess that won't help!!!! That's what they call in Holland "ostrich policy" LOL :what you don't see... is not there. ..Right. If I see her again she be smacked or put on other plant.
Tulip
Well, they not only eat the tomato's they eat Datura's, Brug's Morning Glory Bushes, ( which they practically decimated overnight !!) I've even had them get on my Jerusalem Cherry , course all are related, so at some point, I'm saying enough !
How could you not love this moth that works the night shift? I plant the Datura so when I find them on the tomato plants I can move them. The Datura will fill back in quickly after they pupate. However, if you notice in one picture the rice looking things....that caterpillar is already dead, and just doesn't know it. Those you definately need to squash to keep the wasp pupa from hatching and endangering butterfly caterpillars.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/showimage/422/