It started with a frantic cry from outside, "Mom, come quick, what should we do."
They had this thing hanging from a stick and almost grossed me out. It was neat, yet kinda scary looking and it reminded all of us of the caterpillar that stung our daughter a couple of years ago. Yes, it stung her and the sting will make you go into shock and she was well on her way to the land of shock. (That incident is to blame for at least 50 of my gray hairs.)
Anyways it is called a Hickory Horned Devil Caterpillar and will not do a thing to you, except maybe scare you. All those nasty looking horn thingys are for show to their enemies. These caterpillars are the largest in North America and can grow up to 6 inches...you can tell from the picture that this one is as big as my phone. It will then go into the ground and develop into a cocoon and become the largest moth in North America. They aren't too bad for the environment, not like the tent caterpillars.
A picture of the saddle back caterpillar is below. If you ever see one, DO NOT TOUCH it. Our daughter came in complaining of a bite and after further investigating we notice a large welt on her upper arm, so I put a baking soda paste on it thinking she got stung. Well, that didn't help, so more research on the computer told us to stick some duct tape on her sting and rip it off. (ouch!!) We did that and it was almost an immediate change, that tape pulls out the little hairs that are causing her to go into shock and causing the welt.
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