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lappet, any member of the insect genus Tolype of the Lasiocampidae family of moths (order Lepidoptera). The genus includes the eggars, named for their egg-shaped cocoons, and the tent caterpillars, which spin huge, tent-shaped communal webs in trees. Lappets in the larval stage have lateral lobes, or lappets, on each segment of their body. Adults are stoutbodied and usually bluish gray, with a typical wingspan of 25 to 75 mm (1 to 3 inches). Many...