floridensis
janson jones
Megalopyge opercularis, 19 September 2020
Megalopyge opercularis, the Southern flannel moth;
Flagler county, Florida (19 September 2020).
Now, this is a cool damn species. As adults, the Southern flannel moth is awesomely furry. You can sort of see that here, right? What you can’t see is how much furrier they are as caterpillars. You also can’t see how much more dangerous they are as caterpillars. Truly, in their caterpillar form, Southern flannel moths are not to be trifled with. They sport venomous spines that can deliver an extremely painful sting to anyone unfortunate enough to make contact. Fortunately, I’ve abstained from such contact so far. In fact, I’m never lucky enough to see them as caterpillars. Just the furry adults like the one you see here. No complaints. I dig the less-dangerous, winged-and-fuzzy form.
floridensis 