This year I have been making a concerted effort to record more lepidoptera larvae, and in particular moth larvae. To that end I have been visiting various sites with a beating tray to collect caterpillars off a selection of trees and shrubs. So far Andy and myself have managed to find nearly 50 species and I will post photos of some of the more interesting finds later in the year.
On Sunday I beat a Grey Shoulder-knot caterpillar off oak at MVCP during a BNHS meeting. I took it home as I didn't know what it was. On Sunday evening it was fine and I photographed it.
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| Grey Shoulder-knot photo Melissa Banthorpe |
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I checked it on Monday and it was still looking ok but it hadn't eaten much. On Tuesday evening I checked it again and got a bit of a shock.
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| Grey Shoulder-knot with added extras photo Melissa Banthorpe |
It was no longer moving and appeared to be stuck to the leaf with several cocoons attached to it. I've seen parasitised larvae before where there have been a few cocoons but nothing quite to this extent.
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