Cats in the Trees

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Ken Ramos
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Location: lat=35.4005&lon=-81.9841

Cats in the Trees

Post by Ken Ramos »

Don't know what kind of "cats" these are. They are quite small, less than a half an inch and seem to occur only in the Persimmon trees around my home. Tried looking them up on bugguide but lost my patience with it. Bugguide is more of like looking for a needle in a haystack sort of thing, though it is a worthwhile site. Anyway this is them. :)

Image
Caterpillars in Persimmon Tree
EOS 20D
Manual Mode/hand held
1/125 sec. @ f/6.3 ISO 100
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Canon 430 EX Speedlite (full)
Cloudy, midday

salden
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Post by salden »

I do not know what they are, but you have a great image here. The fibers give the image depth. I remember a "worm" hanging down from a tree using fibers like is shown here. The local said it was a silk worm, but who knows.
Sue Alden

rjlittlefield
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Post by rjlittlefield »

Ken Ramos wrote:Bugguide is more of like looking for a needle in a haystack sort of thing
Ken, I have in front of me a book on identifying immature insects of many kinds, including moths down to family (but no farther).

Unlike BugGuide, the book uses a very concise dichotomous key approach.

Please forgive me for quoting one of its more concise and fundamental couplets for moths. 8)
12a. Body with tufted or secondary hairs; at least 2 setae on tubercle vi of 6th abdominal segment, or with additional setae on proleg.
Fig. 424. ......41

12b. Body without tufted or secondary hairs; tubercle vi with a single seta; tubercle vii with at most 3 setae, unless the prolet has a multiserial circle of crochets. Fig. 425. ........13
I'm not suggesting that this is much better or much worse than a needle in a haystack, mind you. It's just that sometimes there simply don't exist any good ways to ID things unless you've seen them before and happen to remember.

I have no clue what these critters are, either. It is a nice clear picture, though. :D

--Rik

Ken Ramos
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Joined: Thu Jul 27, 2006 2:12 pm
Location: lat=35.4005&lon=-81.9841

Post by Ken Ramos »

Thanks guys. :D I tried researching them some more but eventually gave up again. I am a bit confused as to what a tubercle is in relation to a segment, I suppose I could look it up now that I think of it but I am writting this at the moment, though I could also open another tab and yadda, yadda, yadda...

Thanks Sue, Rik :D

beetleman
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Post by beetleman »

A very sharp picture Ken. You captured them very well. I love when Rik talks scientific to us :wink:
Take Nothing but Pictures--Leave Nothing but Footprints.
Doug Breda

DaveW
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Location: Nottingham, UK

Post by DaveW »

Can't you Google a Natural History Museum Web site Ken, finding their e-mail address and then e-mail them the picture as an attachment and ask for identification?

From using various keys for the Cactaceae I find you need a reasonable knowledge of the plants themselves to be able to use the keys, I'm sure the same is true with caterpillars.

DaveW

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