Be carful of them caterpillars

[Alan Trout]

Guy's and gal's

Just a far warning Be careful are trees and shrubs. I brushed up against a tree in my yard today and a IO moth caterpillar attached itself to my jacket. When I went to put my hand in my pocket the little son of a gun stung the crud out of my hand. for those who have never been stung by a caterpillar before it is an experience that I do not intend to repeat. I have been stung by scorpions, bees, wasp, and fire ants and this is the worst pain of any sting I have ever had. It is a very intense burning that gets worse and worse. Suggested treatment is to use tape to get spines out and then put baking soda or meat tenderizer on the affected area. It was like I had instant arthritis in my hand. My fingers became swollen and joints were very stiff. It wore off after about an hour but came back a bout 5 hours later until I put more meat tenderizer on the area and took more Motrin.

My wife got stung by an asp a couple of years ago and I did not believe how bad the pain was. I am a believer now for sure.

Here is what those little suckers look like.

Alan

[John Keeton]

Alan, add to the list the pack saddle caterpillar - both of these fellows actually "sting" by a chemical burn as I understand it. I am familiar with the pack saddle because they love corn fields and we used to run into them as kids while picking corn.

[John Coloccia]

Alan, add to the list the pack saddle caterpillar - both of these fellows actually "sting" by a chemical burn as I understand it. I am familiar with the pack saddle because they love corn fields and we used to run into them as kids while picking corn.

That looks like one of those dolls at the carnival that you knock over with a bean bag.

[Jerry Marcantel]

Alan, when I saw your name as the starter of this thread, I thought you might have exposed a critter from that wood I gave you awhile back. I'm glad it wasn't. I've had the occasion to run up against those type of catapillars when I was a kid growing up in Louisiana, but since I've been here in the desert, my only concern is scorpions and snakes.... I do hope that was a typo when you stated your wife was stung by an "asp".... Could that have been a "wasp"?

[Larry Edgerton]

I used to live in Kerrville Tx., and there were some caterpillers that were a beautiful vibrant velvet blue. If you picked one up something in their feet would cause your skin to have a very severe reaction. Because they were so pretty, kids liked to pick them up.

I was stung a year or so ago up here, and the only thing I saw was a caterpiller. I thought it was a bee, but now I am wondering.

Larry

[Alan Trout]

Jerry,

My wife was stung by an Asp or also know as the Puss Moth Caterpillar. They are considered the worst of the stinging caterpillars. She had pain and what looks like blood spots at the site for close to 2 weeks. It was a nasty sting. Mine was just painful and my hand is a bit stiff this morning. Again thanks for the wood. I have not started into it yet but you will be the first to know when I do.

Thanks,

Alan

[Primvs Aebvtivs]

I thought someone was having a joke on the unitiated with the "Puss Moth Caterpillar" until I googled it... BOY oh boy! The page also showed the Cinnabar Moth caterpillar, which we get in the U.K. - I didn't know what they grew into, or what they ate - also hadn't reliased they're poisonous!

[ray hampton]

Jerry,

My wife was stung by an Asp or also know as the Puss Moth Caterpillar. They are considered the worst of the stinging caterpillars. She had pain and what looks like blood spots at the site for close to 2 weeks. It was a nasty sting. Mine was just painful and my hand is a bit stiff this morning. Again thanks for the wood. I have not started into it yet but you will be the first to know when I do.

Thanks,

Alan

the Asp is a name of a bad snake from the Africa, I got sting by a ufo , unidentical FIRE ooooo,I never found it but it can stay away from me

[ray hampton]

the Kentucky horse farmers lost a number of foals because the mares would eat the leaves from the cherry trees and the caterpillars that were on the trees, the caterpillars ate the leaves and produce cyanide, I wonder much cyanide the caterpillar will inject into your body when they sting

[robert baccus]

I don't know about the cyanide in the worms but the foilage and bark of most of the "fruit" trees is laced with the stuff. there are hundreds of stinging catapillars and most stung me in my career as a forester. the very wust is a white halfmoon looking catapillar about an inch long. it paralized? me from hand into my upper chest muscles with severe pain for hours----but they all hurt. the only time they seemed to get bad was in the fall of the year.

[ray hampton]

when do the caterpillar spins their cocoons

[Sid Matheny]

We have the pack saddles down here also and I'm here to tell you, stay away from them. Talk about a burning sting that lasts.:(

Sid

[Gary Hodgin]

Do all caterpillars sting? I've lived in small towns (west, east, and middle tn, close to Sid) all my life and have seen many caterpillars but never heard that they could sting. I don't recall ever coming into contact with them though.

[Bill Huber]

In the area around Fort Worth there was a big out break of Asps about 2 years ago. There were people going to the hospital after being hit but the little things. I was lucky and never got hit by one, I guess it is really bad. The bushes were full of them, there was one school that had to have the bushes taken out because they could not control them.
These pictures were taken in my daughters bushes.

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