caterpillar indentification
Posted by nic petrykowski on September 2, 2005
Q: Hi I found a caterpiller that is light green and brown that has two tails on its backside.
Habitat: field/meadow
State: Ohio
Habitat: field/meadow
A: I'm a bit confused about the "two tails on its backside". There are some caterpillars with a single horn-like projection on their tail ends but I don't know one that has two.
The swallowtail family (Papillionidae) does have an assortment of caterpillars that have two horn-like projections they can raise when alarmed but these are near the head. These are glands that produce a smelly odor and help keep predators away. Take a look at this website and see if it resembles your animal. Thanks for your question and I hope this helps with your identification.
John Wiessinger ( September 3, 2005)