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Black Fuzzy Caterpillar with White Rings (Agreeable tiger moth caterpillar)

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Thank you
by: Ethan

Thanks so much for your answer Moni. I found a picture on the Internet that looks just like my caterpillar. I did not know it will take him that long to become a moth. Hopefully he will live that long. I also found a picture of the moth he will turn into and it looks very nice.
Agreeable tiger moth caterpillar
by: Moni

Ethan
Your caterpillar is an Agreeable tiger moth caterpillar, so Miriam was correct that it was one of the tiger moths.
These are found in SW US and east to the Atlantic then up into Canada.
Caterpillars are general feeders on herbaceous plants, including dandelion, plantain, and pigweed. So if you are going to rear it those are a few things it might eat. Here is some information for rearing caterpillars - http://www.aprairiehaven.com/?page_id=9862. You can also submit questions - Which I would recommend for this insect. These are folks that raise caterpillars regularly. This site came from this website -
http://www.buglifecycle.com

Should you want to try to rear it - here is what I have written about rearing caterpillars......

The rearing of caterpillars is a challenge. Mother Nature does it best. And just so you know ahead of time, when you find a caterpillar in the 'wild', sometimes they have been parasitized ...meaning another insect like a fly or wasp has laid eggs inside the caterpillar. So when you try to rear the caterpillar, it dies from the eggs inside it - not something you can predict.
This caterpillar stage lasts about 35 days. And then overwinters in pupa stage...so you would not see the moth until next spring.

With all that said the basics of rearing any insect is to feed it what it wants to eat...fresh (never sprayed with insecticides) food continually. Then, when the caterpillar stops eating...they will typically go searching for a place to pupate.

Good luck with your project and send us a photo of the moth!
Thank You
by: Ethan

Miriam,

Thank you for telling me what my caterpillar is. I have not touched him yet. It is good to know that I should not try to. We found out today that he likes to eat cabbage and cherry tree leaves. He did not like oak, maple, magnolia, crabapple or tomato leaves. Since I know what he will eat now, I am going to keep him until he turns into a moth.
Black Fuzzy Caterpillar with White Rings
by: Miriam

Dear Ethan,
I searched all over the internet and did not find this exact caterpillar. However, there were many similar and they were all identified as a Tiger Moth Caterpillar. I think that is what you have. It was mentioned that the fuzzy "hair" can be irritating to skin, so be careful when handling it. I hope this is helpful.

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