Wooly bears?

Can anyone tell me what are the big (maybe 2" long) brownish caterpillars seen at this time of year? The natives call them wooly bears. What do they turn into? Are they beneficial or harmful? Any help will be welcomed by this relative newcomer, and thanks!

i think they turn into a yellow moth, but idk its too warm for em here. these kind dont sting you. you can supposedly predict whether it will be a warm or harsh winter by the length of their black stripe

Looks like it turns into an Isabella Tiger Moth. See picture here.
http://www.enature.com/fieldguides/enlarged.asp?imageID=18014

Thanks much to both of you! That's an awesome moth, and must be huge since the caterpillars are impressively big. If that old wives' tale is true, we must in for a heck of a winter; the wooly bears are essentially dark all over this fall.

HA! I haven't heard about Wooly Bears since I left Ohio. Would be suprised if they lived this far south. Here's a giggle - they are so cute, Ohio has an annual Wooly Bear Festival! How's that for odd? (Ohioans will use anything as an excuse to have a festival)

The old wives' tale is a thick brown stripe means a mild winter, a thin brown stripe means a hard one. Eerily accurate, I hear...

http://vermilionohioharbourtown.homestead.com/VermilionOhioWoollyBearFestival.html

tresa...We do have wooly bears:-)

Yay :-) I'd love my girls to see one, they are so darn cute and fuzzy!

I'd send you some for the kids, but don't think they'd enjoy the trip: we have LOTS this fall.

There is a Wooly Worm Festival in Beech Mountain each fall. Not sure which weekend it is this year.

Okay, guys, I'm impressed: festivals in both Ohio and SC to celebrate these caterpillars. Fascinating! Who knew they had such a following??

Hi All
We have a wooly worm festival too in NC - in Blowing Rock/Valle Crucis/Boone (forget which one) but all connected really. If I am not mistaken, I think there is a wooly worm race (!!) It is packed that time of year since Applachian Univ. has its homecoming that same week.

The WW festival is in Banner Elk and the same day is usually the Fall Festival in Valle Crucis. The Valle Crucis fest is my favorite; they have fresh apple cider; I wonder how the drought will affect the apple crop this year.
The Mast General Store website should have all the schedules for the festivals.
www.mastgeneralstore.com

Figures I'd list all the possible city/sites and still miss it! (snort)

Also, sometimes Blowing Rock schedules Art in the Park on that weekend too. It's really gotten bigger with more diverse vendors.

I know, Art in the Park is cool too. They and the Valle Crucis event draw the best artists and craftsmen. I haven't been to either event in about 4 years and I miss them.