[bravemurphy]

I have been wondering for a week or two now why the huge caterpillars have been laying eggs and thought this strange.

I will now look after this larvae through the winter.

Have a look at this
vMG-LWyNcAs

[mumofstig]

  That's disgusting -  I couldn't even watch til the end *shudder shudder cringe*

[sunshineband]

One way of dealing with them 

[Big Gee]

I have been wondering for a week or two now why the huge caterpillars have been laying eggs and thought this strange.

I will now look after this larvae through the winter.

Have a look at this
vMG-LWyNcAs

Fabulous video!

BUT caterpillars laying eggs you say? Are you sure you're not nursing caterpillar poo over the winter months?

 

[bravemurphy]

There are literally hundreds of the little cocoons up our lotty.

If you give the big caterpillars a squeeze you can see the grubs in the guts.

And on closer inspection you can just about see the grub in the little cocoon (well I could with the ones on the greenhouse window). 

[Salmo]

These are the larvae of parasitic wasps. Towards the end of the Yuotube clip you can see a few of little black wasps. The lively caterpillar at the end appears to be a new one a new one that has been put in, the original has been devoured by the lavae before they spun their cocoons.

There have been a lot of these about this year. One day you notice a rather bloated caterpillar, a few days later there is just a collection of cocoons. Lets hope they survive the Winter in good numbers ready for next years cabbage whites.

[Big Gee]

. . . . . . . . Lets hope they survive the Winter in good numbers ready for next years cabbage whites.

Amen to that!

Parasitic wasps are a gift from nature to any lottie gardener - they do as good a job for us as caterpillar eating birds.

[Dr_Pepper]

Should be a pic of some parasitic wasp larvae munching a moth larvae I found earlier today attached....