The Jewel Caterpillar

Dalceridae is a family of about 85 small, fuzzy moths. Their larvae are known as jewel caterpillars on account of the strange gumdrop-like cones that coat their skin. They are also unusual in their movement: instead of walking on legs, jewel caterpillars inch along using abdominal suckers. This trait has earned the caterpillars a second common name: slug caterpillars. (As is the problem with common names, Dalceridae are not the only group known as “slug caterpillars.” That honor also belongs to a related family of moths, Limacodidae, that use the same abdominal suction.) Many Dalceridae species have flashy colors or appendages. In many species this signals toxicity and warns predators of danger before it can take a bite, but Dalceridae aren’t toxic. Their defense instead relies on their jeweled coating. It functions like a lizard’s detachable tail: the gummy segments slip off easily, distracting the predator with a mouthful of jelly while the caterpillar wiggles to safety.