Came across this little creature while putting out cedar mulch yesterday. It was about an inch long and its covering looked like fur. Wondering if it was some kind of mole? When I turned it over with a twig, it curled up in a ball. It did not move around fast but it was gone when I looked for it later.
Glenna
It is an Asp caterpillar, the larva of a moth, I am glad you didn't touch it, the hairs sting something fierce,
Haven't seen one of those in 20 years. Used to be very plentiful when I was a kid.
http://neuro.bcm.edu/eagleman/asp/
Thanks for the ID. I'd never seen or heard of it before. Also glad I didn't touch it with my finger. I had already had an "exciting" encounter just getting the mulch bags out of storage building. A snake was under them and it looked very much like the copperhead my neighbor killed in her back yard a few years ago. It took off and so did I. LOL. We've had the big snakes that eat rats, etc., before but they don't worry me as much as the smaller ones like this one was.
Yes, those can be dangerous.
