Posted by Michele Chartier on March 11, 2006

Q: I had a wooly bear through winter I kept it in a closet with some grass and some water occasionallly it was fine but then it lost alot of weight and slowly started to coccoon but then it just apperad dead and its not moving at all and there is no cocoon I wanted to know what to do I think its dead or possibly in a pupae stage without a coccon is this possible.or can you tell me what went wrong .

Habitat: suburban/yard

State: Rhode Island

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: I can't be sure Michele, but I'll bet it was the fact that it was kept in a warm environment that has affected your Woolly Bear. Sounds to me as though your caterpillar is dead. It should be in a cocoon if it were progressing normally. By keeping it in a warmer-than-normal environment, the caterpillar was receiving two different messages. One said, "it's winter and you need to hibernate" and the other said " it's warm so your body needs to keep burning lots of calories". Your little guy probably simply ran out of stored food (fat) and starved to death. If you want to try doing this again next year, be sure to "think like an animal". In other words, since a normal Woolly Bear would be in the cold all winter, be sure to keep your animal in cold place to overwinter - not in the house. You can keep an eye on your guy from time to time and once spring arrives, it will make a cocoon. Once again, allow it to remain outside where it is cooler than your house until it emerges into an adult moth. Thanks for writing and I hope this helps.

John Wiessinger ( March 12, 2006)