Outback caterpillar (Itchy Grub) train

Well done mate,
I like the footage on the second one........
Peter

They are going off to form a nest where they jam them selves in and I suppose they emerge as moths or something.

In the Eastern WA wheatbelt where I come from they usually formed the nest in a mallee or gum tree and quite often the limb that they attach the nest to died off for some reason.

cheers

wafarmer

Image Could Not Be Found

Mick
Great shot of the Caterpillars, I remember the first time I ever saw them was when I was a trip in 1967 heading North from Pt Hedland, they were crossing the road and I thought it was a rope , They can be seen also around the Brisbane Airport area, Thanks for sharing it with us.

.

YUUUUUCK

I remember these creatures well. Growing up in Central Qld we would see these "itchy grubs" all the time. As children we were almost as scared of these things as snakes!

Their reputed power to cause a horrible and untreatable itching was accepted as an unshakable truth, even though I don't remember anyone being unlucky enough to touch one. The only suitable fate was to burn off the nest, and preferably the whole tree (just to be sure) with metho.

Ahh, good times.

Thanks for the video reminder.

Ben

You often see their nests up a metre or so in the prickly wattles in the outback.
They are the bag moth caterpillar, and their nest resemble a browny coloured bag hanging from the tree.

It's good fun trying to join the front of the line up to the end, to get them going in an eternal circle.

I think they join themselves up to deter predators, tricking them into thinking it's a snake.

Dave

If you break the line the leader will stop until the "lost" part rejoins.

We saw them up at Cape Leveque.

Amazing.

They're not just in the outback - I've seen it in Lane Cove National Park 15 km out of Sydney.

Yep we've got em here in WA as well and I've taken a few pictures of them. I call them a moving rope.
I've broken their line a couple of times, they get a bit confused at first but eventually sort out who should be leading them.

g'day there
i have always refered to them as a/hole catarpilla
s because they follow the ars 'ole in front of them

i've seen them dozens of times in wa in various places and i'm not sure and will stand being corrected but was told once by an old bushman that they are related to spitfires that you quiet often see in nests hanging from wattle trees
itch time to go
mazcan barry

Yep

Even seen them on Fraser Island earlier this year. They must be invading us....

Redeye

G'day Mick. Excellent Macro filming.