The Limacodidae are known as “Slug Moths” in reference to their bizarre caterpillars (see below). Although there are almost 2000 named species, many of them are tropical and I only observed one at the mothing event, the Skiff Moth. These moths feed on various trees and woody plants as larvae including “birch, blueberry, oak, poplar, and willow” (Beadle and Leckie 2012). Some slug moths (especially the tropical members of this group) have bristly spines that can give a nasty sting, but the Skiff moth larva doesn’t seem to have any of these venomous defenses, perhaps relying entirely on its strange non-caterpillar appearance for evading predation or disturbance.
References:
Beadle, David and Leckie, Seabrooke 2012. Peterson Field Guide to Moths of Northeastern North America. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
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