Green out of Darkness - _TNY_6020
I am positively surprised by the look of this shot of a caterpillar of the common yellow swallowtail (Papilio machaon), also known as the old world swallowtail eating its way out of the dark on a leaf of a purple angelica (Angelica gigas).
Notice the orange pair of spots on its forehead which vaguely resembles a pair of sunglasses here? That's actually what is called an osmeterium which serves as the caterpillar's defense against predators, something they share with all 500+ species of swallowtail around the world.
When feeling threatened, the caterpillar extends a Y-shaped organ there which releases a foul smell to ward of hungry threats.
This shot is a couple of years old now and I haven't seen any of these since learning about the osmeterium, but when I come acrosse one, I'll make sure to poke it a little and hopefully get a shot of that orange Y.
The first instar of the caterpillar looks quite different - like this: www.flickr.com/photos/tinyturtle/51629568129/
Green out of Darkness - _TNY_6020
I am positively surprised by the look of this shot of a caterpillar of the common yellow swallowtail (Papilio machaon), also known as the old world swallowtail eating its way out of the dark on a leaf of a purple angelica (Angelica gigas).
Notice the orange pair of spots on its forehead which vaguely resembles a pair of sunglasses here? That's actually what is called an osmeterium which serves as the caterpillar's defense against predators, something they share with all 500+ species of swallowtail around the world.
When feeling threatened, the caterpillar extends a Y-shaped organ there which releases a foul smell to ward of hungry threats.
This shot is a couple of years old now and I haven't seen any of these since learning about the osmeterium, but when I come acrosse one, I'll make sure to poke it a little and hopefully get a shot of that orange Y.
The first instar of the caterpillar looks quite different - like this: www.flickr.com/photos/tinyturtle/51629568129/