Victoria Quinton wrote:
>
> On the weekend we saw a red caterpillar. My husband attempted to
> photograph it, but the film hasn't yet been developed.
> Does anyone have any suggestions about identifying it?
> I didn't want to keep it in case red meant poisonous, which seemed
> likely
> as otherwise it would have been a juicy morsel for the local birds.
> Oh it was at Red hill on the Mornington Peninsula.
>
> Victoria Quinton
>
> http://www.alphalink.com.au/~mermaid
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Dear Victoria,
How big was this caterpillar? Habitat? Foodplant? Feeding? Sheltering in
rolled or stuck-together leaves, under bark, on ground? Hanging on
thread? Wandering about?
Red colour could be a 'warning' colour, or mimicry of another species
warning colour, or the result of eating pigmented leaves.
Many caterpillars change colour markedly as they grow and moult, or at
the last stage just before pupation.
I can't think of any local butterfly caterpillar which is red - but I
could be wrong. There is a big reference book on the Moths of Australia
by CSIRO, and several books on butterflies - try a good library.
Best wishes, Anthea Fleming in Ivanhoe,
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