Happy Mystery Monday! Do you know what fungus is growing on this beech tree? Hint: we’ve covered this one before (at a different stage) and this is currently growing underneath a bunch of beech blight aphids.
Last week, we asked you about the red-humped oakworm (Symmerista canicosta). True to its name, the red-humped oakworm feeds on oak trees, as well as other trees in the oak family. When going to ID caterpillars, there are several that look quite similar, but one main thing to note here is the black and white dorsal stripes. This caterpillar has five dorsal black stripes with four white stripes. The similar looking orange-humped mapleworm has 3 black stripes with 2 white stripes along its black. The adults can be distinguished only by some very detailed examination, so we are fortunate to have found the caterpillar instead!
#adkinsarboretum #mysterymonday #mysterycaterpillar #mysteryfungus
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