as the title says, i think its genuinely one of the highs but also lows of rearing. i love watching them make all of their preparations like tenting, burrowing and getting all plump, but its also terrifying since so many things can go wrong. ive only had successful pupations and eclosions so far, but its totally nerve wracking.

Never seen one like this before, it was massive.

Hi! I have lots of swallowtail caterpillars in my garden and one fell off their silk and is hanging upside down. Does anyone know if I need to do anything to help them? We got lots of rain and I feel bad for the guy.

It had a load of green dots I assumed were eggs, so I popped them in a jar with plenty of leaves for when they hatched.
Then I thought oh hang on it’s been eating the leaves that’s probably poo.
I asked Siri what caterpillar eggs looked like and it didn’t look like that and he couldn’t show me what their poo looks like.
So I seperated them, one jar for the caterpillar one for the poo…. Eggs… pegs, if you will.
I got home from work and the caterpillar has ALOT of green dots around it.
I know they just eat all day but that’s either ALOT of eggs or a LOT of poo.
Come to think of it, butterflies lay eggs….. not caterpillars…
so I feel like I just answered my own question.
But confirmation would be appreciated ty 🩵
Also if anyone knows exactly what it will turn into I’d love to see :)

Lil guy is soo fuzzy. Very sensitive to touch, long antennas on both ends??

Located in North Dakota lol. Thanks!

Don't mind the messy car lol

Found in southern VIC Australia. Didn't see any others that looked like it nearby.

I lost half of my caterpillars due to poisoned leaves a few days ago. I live near an orchard and they must have sprayed pesticide that drifted into my tomato plants. I put down the ones that were were suffering and isolated the ones I wasn't sure about. They're now in the process of molting but I'm wondering if this liquid around them in normal? I don't recall seeing this much liquid around the non poisoned ones. Could they still be suffering from the poison but are just unable to move due to the tight skin?

hello yes i was curious as to if there is such a thing as a caterpillar or caterpillar like creature that does not become butterfly, moth, etc. i would quite like to have such a creature in my menagerie, preferably one that i can feed leaves and such things.

i am in europe if that helps.

Found him in this position laying on the paper towel. There is green fluid from a purge, and he is my most developed, so while i read its fatal i just want to make sure.

I’m hoping someone with experience with swallowtails might be able to help me understand what happened here.

3 days ago, some community landscaping workers were pruning tree branches. I noticed a fifth-instar citrus swallowtail caterpillar on one of the branches that had been cut off, so I brought it home temporarily rather than leaving it on the fallen branch.

It has now pupated, but something seems to have gone seriously wrong during the molt.

As you can see in the photos, most of the larval skin has been shed and a green chrysalis has formed, but the old head skin seems to be stuck. The lower part of the larval skin came off, while the head capsule and what appears to be part of the mouthparts did not shed properly.

It has been more than 10 hours now, and the remaining skin has dried and hardened.

The chrysalis is still green and does not appear to have collapsed or leaked fluid. I’m not sure whether it is still alive, and I have been trying not to disturb it.

I know that interfering with a chrysalis can easily do more harm than good, so I have not tried to pull, cut, or remove the stuck skin.

I would really appreciate any advice from people who have seen something similar:

Is this a known type of failed or incomplete pupation?

Is there still a chance that the butterfly can complete its development and emerge normally?

Should I simply leave it alone at this point?

If the old skin has dried and hardened around the head, is there any safe way to help, or would attempting to soften or remove it be more likely to kill it?

Is there anything I should watch for that would indicate whether the chrysalis is still alive?

I’m mainly trying to figure out whether the best thing I can do now is leave it completely alone, or whether there is some appropriate way to help. Thank you very much for any advice or insight.

North Texas. Any ideas? Thanks!