NATURE
Clockwise from top left: A Luna Moth cocoon; a variety of pupae; an open Luna Moth cocoon revealing the pupa; a Red-Spotted Purple larva inside its hibernaculum.
a CLOSER LOOK Unseen by most, many caterpillars spend the winter in our yards Words and photography by MIKE DUNN
A
walk in the winter woods brings crisp air, the sound of leaves underfoot, and an appreciation for the shapes and textures of so many plants hidden by leaves in the warmer months: birch bark releasing from a trunk in gentle curls, spiny grass that rises undeterred by the frost. But insects are generally absent from the landscape. Where do they go? Look closely, and you may see clues: a rolled leaf still attached to an otherwise
naked branch, an oblong tuft of fuzz under some loose bark, or maybe a brown nub attached to a dried stem with silk. As varied as these discoveries are, they’re all the work of caterpillars. I have an inordinate fondness for caterpillars, the larval stage of butterflies and moths. A lot of people either don’t pay attention to caterpillars or want to eradicate them because they “eat my plants.” But caterpillars are one of nature’s most efficient means of converting the greenery that surrounds us into helpful
pollinators and food for other animals — and they become an amazing variety of beautiful and intriguing flying adults. Throughout my career as an environmental educator, I have used caterpillars as a gateway organism to help people understand and appreciate our local fauna, as well as the native plants that benefit wildlife. They are abundant and easy to observe and most people aren’t afraid of them. In North Carolina, there are about 177 species of butterflies, and over 2,900 species of moths, so no matter where The Art & Soul of Raleigh | 35
