The Crecopia Caterpillars

For three weeks, we’ve been watching the crecopia caterpillars.

We initially found three of them on an elderberry bush. Vince read about them, studied about them. He was going to build a little box to put the cocoons in they would have a chance at becoming moths. When we take the dogs out every morning, we check on the caterpillars. On morning, a couple of weeks after we discovered them, we went out and there were only two. We searched the surrounding bushes to see if the third one had moved but we couldn’t find him.

We watched the two remaining ones shed their skins. They grew to being about 4″ long and they were fat (and they were eating ALL the leaves of that one elderberry bush).

Earlier this week, the second one disappeared. Again, we searched to no avail. He was nowhere to be found.

A couple of days ago, the third one started spinning silk for his cocoon. Yesterday Chad, Nicole and Addie were here and we showed them. They’ve been checking on them since we started out with three.

This morning we went out and the last one is on the ground and appears to be dead. Vince said “I hope he’s sleeping”. Yes, me too but he doesn’t look like he’s sleeping. The silk he had spun yesterday is all messed up like something was messing with it too. Oscar ran around like crazy in that area like there had been a critter out there. Could have been a squirrel or a cat . . who knows.

Seeing those three caterpillars may have been a once in a lifetime chance. We were hoping to get to see them as moths but, as our native plant guy said . . even if something happens to them, at least you got to see them. Many people never do. He had never seen them til he came and saw the ones here. That’s how it is in nature!