Caterpillar Insects

But there is a positive side to the fact that caterpillars actively eat tree leaves. During the years of active breeding of butterflies, water sources become much cleaner. This is due to the fact that there is nothing for the caterpillars to fall to the ground - they eat most of the leaves.

Their bodies are covered with hairs that cause allergic reactions and skin irritation. In order to feel the harm of these creatures, you don't even need to touch them. The fact is that the body of each caterpillar is covered with 700 thousand hairs that are easily and far blown by the wind.

Before turning into butterflies that pollinate plants, caterpillars are recognized as pests. They cause significant damage to agriculture by eating the leaves and fruits of plants. Some of them are poisonous to humans — in 2019, there was an invasion of oak silkworm caterpillars (Antheraea pernyi) on the territory of Germany, Holland and other European countries.

Throughout its life, the caterpillar feeds intensively, storing nutrients for further development. Caterpillars of most species feed on green parts of plants. Some develop inside fruits. branches and trunks, asking for wood; on lichens and on dead parts of plants; on animal remains (down, feathers, wool), as well as on wax. Certain species are predatory.

Caterpillars are characterized by a pair of silk-secreting glands that open through a duct on the lower lip. The secret it emits when in contact with air forms a silk thread, which is used by the caterpillar to build a cocoon, make a protective web, fasten leaves, etc.

The body consists of a head, three thoracic and ten abdominal segments. Head with heavily sclerotized integuments, the rest of the body is mostly soft, without large sclerites. The body has developed bristles arranged in a strictly defined manner, specific for individual families, genera, and even species. In addition to these primary bristles, at older ages, many open-living forms develop a thick cover of secondary bristles (the most powerful in caterpillars of representatives of the bear subfamily). Body sizes range from a few millimeters (in some moths) to 12-14 cm (some peacock eyes) [1].