A Furry Face in the Forest
This furry face belongs to the caterpillar of an Automedon giant owl butterfly – which calls the forests of South America home. The butterfly that this caterpillar will transform into has striking iridescent blue patches on the tops of its wings.
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DownloadA Furry Face in the Forest
This furry face belongs to the caterpillar of an Automedon giant owl butterfly – which calls the forests of South America home. The butterfly that this caterpillar will transform into has striking iridescent blue patches on the tops of its wings.
What am I looking at?
This is the head of the caterpillar of an Automedon giant owl butterfly (Eryphanis automedon) walking along a bamboo stem. You can see its six pairs of simple eyes, or ocelli (1), and its chewing mouthparts, or mandibles (2).
Click on the right arrow to see an image of the adult butterfly.
Biology in the background
These caterpillars live in the dense forests of South America and feed mainly on grasses in the Poaceae family, including bamboo. They have glands that secrete acid to deter predators, such as large ants. The adult butterflies can live up to six weeks, which is a relatively long lifespan for a butterfly. They feed on the nectar of flowering plants in the forest. Because of this, they are important pollinators, gathering pollen on their legs, face, and wings as they feed and then transporting it to the next flower as they move along.
These caterpillars can grow up to 11 centimeters long, or roughly the length of a human palm. The adult butterflies have roughly the same wingspan.
Technique
These images were created using macrophotography.
TagsIgor Siwanowicz, HHMI's Janelia Research Campus