Caterpillar with Braconid Wasp pupal cases
This is a mass of Braconid Wasp (Braconidae, Hymenoptera) pupal cases on a still-living caterpillar of a Variable Checkerspot (Euphydryas chalcedona) butterfly. I found this under a new leaf of a Southern Bush Monkey Flower (Mimulus aurantiacus var. pubescens, Phrymaceae) shrub. The tiny wasps deposit their eggs through the skin of the caterpillar. The eggs hatch and the larvae develop inside the caterpillar - like the movie Alien. Finally the larvae leave the caterpillar and spin their silk cocoons. The caterpillar is still alive - I could see it moving - but it didn't last long and dropped away by the next day, see this photo. This must be why the caterpillars are so spiky - to keep the wasps away. It might work as I don't find many of these caterpillars that have been "cocooned" like this. (San Marcos Pass, 28 April 2017)
This is my photo for the Macro Mondays group, with the theme of "Crime" - and indeed a crime has been committed here, at least from the point of view of the caterpillar. (I'm sure the wasps see it differently!) The perpetrator is not to be seen, but the pupal cases are indisputable evidence of its work. HMM!
Caterpillar with Braconid Wasp pupal cases
This is a mass of Braconid Wasp (Braconidae, Hymenoptera) pupal cases on a still-living caterpillar of a Variable Checkerspot (Euphydryas chalcedona) butterfly. I found this under a new leaf of a Southern Bush Monkey Flower (Mimulus aurantiacus var. pubescens, Phrymaceae) shrub. The tiny wasps deposit their eggs through the skin of the caterpillar. The eggs hatch and the larvae develop inside the caterpillar - like the movie Alien. Finally the larvae leave the caterpillar and spin their silk cocoons. The caterpillar is still alive - I could see it moving - but it didn't last long and dropped away by the next day, see this photo. This must be why the caterpillars are so spiky - to keep the wasps away. It might work as I don't find many of these caterpillars that have been "cocooned" like this. (San Marcos Pass, 28 April 2017)
This is my photo for the Macro Mondays group, with the theme of "Crime" - and indeed a crime has been committed here, at least from the point of view of the caterpillar. (I'm sure the wasps see it differently!) The perpetrator is not to be seen, but the pupal cases are indisputable evidence of its work. HMM!