Puss Caterpillar (Asp)
Also known as asp, flannel moth caterpillar. Megalopyge opercularis
Florida's most venomous caterpillar — looks like a fluffy teardrop and hides in oak trees.
Photo: Iose (Public domain) · public domain/CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
About 25–35 mm, entirely covered in soft, teardrop-shaped, tan-to-gray fur — it looks like a tiny toupee or a fluffy oval. The fur hides sharp venomous spines beneath. Adults become the white flannel moth.
Oak, elm and hackberry trees near parks, yards, schools and playgrounds across Florida. They drop from trees in late summer and fall, landing on people walking below.
- Furry, teardrop-shaped caterpillars on oak leaves, elm or hackberry trees
- Caterpillars dropping from trees in fall and spring
- Intense, immediate pain — like a burn — after contact with what looked like a fuzzy caterpillar
- A grid-like pattern of red welts at the contact site
Contact with the puss caterpillar's hidden spines causes immediate, intense burning pain, a characteristic grid-pattern rash, headache, nausea and occasionally respiratory distress. It is Florida's most medically significant caterpillar. Remove spines with tape and seek medical care if symptoms are severe.
Rhino treats infested trees with a product that targets caterpillars and reduces the population on and around structures where contact risk is highest.
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