By Mike Isbell
University of Georgia

I found the impressively hairy caterpillars in a covered plastic cup sitting on my desk. A note taped to the cup read, "Mike, I found these things eating up my bushes. What are they?"

It didn't take but one look to know they were puss caterpillars.

These caterpillars are pale yellow, gray or reddish brown, about an inch long and densely covered with long, velvety hair.

If you're the curious type, you may want to pick one up. But don't do it. Don't be fooled by that velvety hair.

Poisonous spines

I walked across the street and found my friend Page, who had brought the caterpillars to me to identify. "Make sure you don't touch those things," I told him.

"Well, what in the world are they?" he asked.

I told him about the poisonous spines and that the caterpillars feed on the leaves of various hardwood trees and shrubs. The caterpillars turn into moths known as southern flannel moths.

"Man, I'm going to go home and kill every one of those critters," he said.

25 species

The puss, saddleback and hag moth caterpillars are the most common poisonous ones around here.

You usually don't need to control them, since you don't normally come into contact with them. But if they're "eating up your bushes" or if you see a number of them feeding on foliage in areas where children play, you might want to get rid of them.

But don't be tempted to touch them after they're dead. Even dead caterpillars can still cause painful stings.

(Mike Isbell is the Heard County Extension Coordinator with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.)