slug caterpillar moth

slug caterpillar moth, (family Limacodidae), any of approximately 1,800 species of insects named for the sluglike appearance of their caterpillars. The group is widely distributed throughout the world but are concentrated in the tropics. Some larvae are brightly colored and have stinging hairs capable of causing a rash in humans who touch them.

Physical description and natural history

In the caterpillars, suckers have replaced the typical larval prolegs, and the larvae seem to glide rather than crawl. The caterpillars feed on plants and pupate in oval or cup-shaped cocoons with a circular hatch that is hung between leaves. The adult moths are small and hairy with fringed wings, and frequently rest with their abdomen held at nearly a right angle from the wings and thorax. They have reduced or absent mouthparts and live only a few days.

(Read Britannica’s essay How Many Legs Does a Caterpillar Have?)

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Major genera and species

One genus, the hag moths (Phobetron), derives its name from the larva’s fleshy appendages, which are covered with brown stinging hairs resembling disheveled or tousled hair. When the caterpillar spins its cocoon the appendages are transferred to the outside of the cocoon, where they serve for protection and camouflage.

The nettle caterpillar (Parasa lepida) is native to southeast Asia, where it is considered a pest on commercial crops including banana, cassava, coffee, cocoa, coconut, mango, oil palm, rubber, and tea. It has also been introduced to Japan.

North American species include the spiny oak slug (Euclea delphinii), the yellow-shouldered slug (Lithacodes fasciola), the crowned slug moth (Isa textula), the skiff moth (Prolimacodes badia), and the saddleback caterpillar (Acharia stimulea). The saddleback caterpillar has two pairs of fleshy horns at either end of its body, which are covered in stinging hairs that can cause a painful swollen rash and even anaphylactic shock in some people.