So I just wanted to stop by real quick to share one photo of this crazy caterpillar I found recently. I was playing a round of disc golf at Moraine State Park when I spotted this guy on the chains on the disc golf basket. I tried futilely to take a photo with my crappy cell phone, and when that failed I resorted the only option I had available to me... I put it in am empty gummi fruit snack pouch that I happened to have in my disc golf bag (don't worry - I've since put a plastic container that I use as a specimen container in my bag for future occurrences since this wasn't the first time I'd wished I had something).

Anyway, after I got it home and did some research into what it was, I am glad that I didn't actually touch this thing. I know caterpillars with hairs like this can cause skin irritation, but this guy is apparently one of the highest ranked caterpillars in terms of medical significance. Here's an excerpt from the University of Florida's Entomology Department's webpage on this species...

Acharia stimulea is best known as a medically significant species. The large spines and potent hemolytic venom rank it as one of the most important North American species of urticating caterpillars, with larvae from the moth family Megalopygidae being the only lepidopterans considered more dangerous (Scott 1963, 1964; Durden and Mullen 2009; Hossler 2010). The spines of A. stimulea are strong, acutely pointed, and hollow. They embed deeply into tissue and break off, and can interrupt healing as the protoplasm from the venom glands dries into the tissue area (Gilmer 1925). The venom itself can cause a systemic condition called erucism or acute urticaria, for which severe symptoms may include migraines, gastrointestinal symptoms, asthma complications, anaphylactic shock, rupturing of erythrocytes, and hemorrhaging (USAF 1982, Hossler 2009). Saddleback Caterpillar (Acharia stimulea)

So yeah - short story... Don't touch!!!

Technical Data: Canon EOS 7D, Canon MP-E 65mm f/2.8 1-5x Macro, 1/250 sec at f/16. Canon Macro Twin Lite MT-24EX in ETTL mode. ISO 100. RAW processing in Adobe Camera Raw.

I'll share a few more here soon, but I wanted to get this one posted because this thing is just so crazy I couldn't wait to share...

- Bill