Patience, thy name is Pyrrharctia isabella

[nanila]

If you live in the UK, I do hope you've been watching the new David Attenborough series Frozen Planet. And if you have, did you notice the sequence on the life cycle of the Arctiid moth? It spends 14 years in caterpillar stage before it finally pupates. Can you imagine waiting 14 years before you were able to reprodu---oh. Anyway, better question: Can you imagine freezing solid every winter for 14 years before you were able to reproduce? CRYONICS FTW.



Wikipedia entry on Pyrrharctia isabella

Comments

[instantramen]

Captain Amothica!

[foxfirefey]

Oh my god it is so fuzzy HOW IS IT SO FUZZY

[afuna]

It looks like spun sugar *____* (...or maybe I've been watching too many cooking shows)

[nanila]

"A nuclear experiment" would go a long way toward explaining why something like this would evolve!

[nanila]

I remember seeing Woolly Bear caterpillars when I lived in the Pacific Northwest. One old wives' tale was that you could predict the length of winter by the length of the orange stripe on its back. I bet if you asked the Woolly Bear how long winter was going to be it would be like, "I don't know. I always sleep through the whole miserable goddamn thing. Haha."

[nanila]

You're so right! The ones that have black ends and an orange middle are like Halloween-themed candy. If you put one on your hand, it makes your skin itch.

[afuna]

Hm, I suppose that is a bit better than putting it in your mouth /o\

[pulchritude]

love your icon :D