Cool Caterpillar Behavior
I got to witness some neat caterpillar behavior today.
I noticed a lot of black swallowtail caterpillars on dill plants, and wanted to examine their facial features more clearly. Attempting to pick one up, I accidentally knocked it to the ground. I felt bad, and tried to put it back on the plant. In that moment, two long orange horns seemingly appeared out of nowhere on the caterpillar's head, and the caterpillar leaned back as if to stab me with them. Startled, I quickly put the insect on the plant immediately and got a photo: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/233827826
Please note that the full sized "horns" were about four times longer than the ones in this photo; the caterpillar had already partially retracted them.
It's just like they say: you learn something new every day.
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