Entomology
Title: woolly bear caterpillars
Information: Do woolly bear caterpillars really predict how long winter will be? Please send us any information on woolly bear caterpillars. Hello, Scientists have proven that woolly bear caterpillars really don't predict the length of the upcoming winter. Here are some useful sites for you related to the Isabella Tiger Moth caterpillar, or commonly called Woolly Bear Caterpillars. Iowa Insect Information Notes: Woolly Bear http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/iiin/wbear.html Entomology Notes #19, (Flying Tigers) from the Michigan Entomological Society http://insects.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/MES/notes/entnote19.html Caterpillars of Eastern Forests: Woolly Bear (Pyrrharctia isabella) [Isabella Tiger Moth] http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/2000/cateast/pyrrisab.htm This site has a picture of the caterpillar and a very brief description A response from the MADScientist service that might be useful to you is: http://128.252.223.112/posts/archives/dec96/845492896.Gb.r.html The Truth about Woolly Bear Caterpillars from the Farmer's Almanac http://www.almanac.com/preview2000/woollybears.html If you would like more information, you can do a search online using the scientific term (Pyrrharctia isabella) and you'll find more reliable resources. For example, you can use Google athttp://google.com and the search string: Pyrrharctia isabella You should also check your library for more resources for information about woolly bears. There are a variety of print resources that you can reference that will provide you with some helpful information such as Peterson Guides and Audubon Guides Ask a librarian if you have trouble finding what you want. Best wishes, AskNSDL Staff last updated Sept. 30, 2004
Category: Entomology