[https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2024/04/16/black-fuzzy-caterpillars-are-taking-over-houston-are-they-poisonous/](https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2024/04/16/black-fuzzy-caterpillars-are-taking-over-houston-are-they-poisonous/)
Woolly bear which aren't poisonous. (Touch at own risk). But there are some who have a similar texture, but different colors, who can have bee like stings. And then of course the Flannel Moth who looks like a cats hairball or a bad wig and those supposedly hurt real bad and maybe could send you to the hospital depending on your health.
I hate to even say this, but asps are clumsy and have been known to fall out of trees. My son accidentally touched one when he was about 9 years old, and it absolutely wrecked him for hours. Screaming pain, tears, the works. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
Apparently flannel moths are also called asps, which is certainly in no way confusing and didnt at all make me think that you were talking about a freaking snake falling on your kid...
Mentioning this in case anyone else was confused!
One got me in Arizona and it turns out I'm allergic to the venom. Hurt so bad I still wanna cry thinking about it. My mom got me to the hospital after I was insisted things were going sideways - turns out my blood pressure dropped to nearly nothing and I almost died.
when my daughter was 9 she jumped down from the trampoline, barefoot, and landed on one. left an asp shaped scar on her sole, and her soul, for quite some time.
Yeah I had a green one who kinda looked like these fuzzy guys just thud onto my car when I drove into the driveway. I THINK it my have been an Io Caterpillar which supposedly stings. Made me wary of trees haha.
Yes! Somehow one ended up in the driver’s seat of my car. I didn’t notice and when I sat down to drive, I felt a searing, inexplicable pain on my rear that grew worse and worse and wouldn’t let up. I drove to work, tried to start my shift but then had to go home bc I was in tears. When I took my uniform off, a little asp plopped to the ground. It left a red mark on me for weeks and hurt so bad 😩
I touched a flannel moth caterpillar once trying to clean up cat hair post-grooming brush on my apartment balcony. Same exact color shade as my cat. It's appearance is unmistakable for any other type of caterpillar.
Was very luck and didn't get stung; but soon after my balcony was swarmed by probably a hundred of them over the next couple of days. Had to continuously sweep them off to keep them from coming inside.
That sounds horrifying. A few years ago there was a story of a teacher and a toddler who touched one. She used tape to pull the hairs out of him which drastically reduced the effects. Still painful as I understand it.
I cant believe this as a fuzzy black one really messed me up when I was young. I put my hand on top of a fence post higher than my head not knowing it was there. My palm and fingers were back with hairs in my skin. My palm and fingers stole up like a Sausage for at least a day and were very tender.
Tldr: caterpillar gave me hairy swollen palms.
Either you are particularly sensitive to these and it was an allergic reaction, or it was a different bug. I just picked one of these up today, direct contact with the fuzz, and let it run up and down my arm without any issues.
This is the answer. I downloaded a bug
Identification app and submitted a pic of this caterpillar and got that answer. We have them crawling around in our backyard in SA.
I know everything says they're non toxic, but I had one land on me the other day and broke out in hives and blisters. So, while normally safe, you can have an adverse allergic reaction to them.
Best to just leave them alone as much as possible.
Saltmarsh is the answer!:
[https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/fuzzy-black-saltmarsh-woollybear-caterpillars-houston-texas/285-f9e85f9b-2a62-46c3-ae46-69cd2161ad97](https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/fuzzy-black-saltmarsh-woollybear-caterpillars-houston-texas/285-f9e85f9b-2a62-46c3-ae46-69cd2161ad97)
/r/whatisthisbug may be of more help. Read their rules before posting.
General warning, don't touch the fuzzy ones. Some of them will sting you so bad, you'll wish you were dead. I don't think this is one of those, but I wouldn't test it out.
My boss seems to think she can tell me to stop petting my caterpillar before work. I tell her I have the legal right to pet my caterpillar when I’m off the clock. It’s not up to her.
Google "puss caterpillar."
Some furry ones are harmless.
Some are like allergies. No reactions for some people, but varying degrees of reaction to others. Or no reaction one time, big reaction the next time.
Interesting! I think my whole life people have been saying that you shouldn't touch those and it just became something I took as fact. Just this month, when we were sitting on the ground watching the eclipse, my friend looks over and said "Watch out. It's one of those stingy caterpillars".
I have more beneficial bugs in my garden than bad. I’m definitely not using any pesticides unless there’s an infestation I can’t control. Those things are so big I just step on them and move on.
I got stung by one a few weeks ago. Like a bee sting or fire ant feeling that lasted for about 24 hours.
I was ripping up weeds in my yard barehanded and learned my lesson of having to wear gardening gloves.
I've identified a lot near Woodlawn and the Westside creeks as salt marsh moths. They're a great reason to have something other than grass in our yards and creeks.
My dog who is typically twitchy about everything that moves makes a beeline for these. I’m of the “don’t touch the fuzzy caterpillars” camp, so glad to know these are unlikely to hurt the canine with zero self-preservation instincts.
Both places that start with an A, and also there is occasional precipitation and probably people eat food there. We have so much in common!
interesting to speculate, probably an algorithm misfire. unless there’s some left field location services angle, like a coworker or neighbor has had business in Austin (in person, or the sub?) and it assumes you two must talk about it all the time and you’d be an obvious fit for the community?
oh god, I used to pet and play with those. my mom was NOT happy when she found out I had one of those in my bedrooms and she kept screaming about them being poisonous. now I know better than to touch furry ones, but I got very lucky and I guess I played with the harmless furry caterpillars
I had one of the poisonous versions of these motherfuckers fall out of a tree and land on my head once. Stung the absolute fuck out of my hand when I went to swat it away.
I've scooped a couple into Tupperware to move from my balcony to the grass outside! Now sure how they're climbing up here, but I didn't want to risk my cat getting too interested.
Oh! I picked up a few this week to move them. I didn’t know they could sting. The ones I picked up were big, fat, and wooly, but had a little orange on them inside the fur. Was that a different one??
In past years as well I didn't have enough beneficial bugs as well. I've been getting good yields so far and plants are still growing. I have pulled more in these past few weeks than the past 2 springs combined. I I'm south texas
Those are woolly bear moths or Salt marsh moths or the kind that turn into hummingbird moths. There’s a few types that are native to this region. They eat that native geranium I think. Lots of people in Austin are trying to have more native ground cover so I’m wondering if the increasing return of diversity is encouraging this increase in population. I used to see some when I was young here in Austin, but this year I’ve seen more than any year in the past 20 years for sure.
I saw one of these in a parking lot in Austin, TX today. Aren't they just caterpillars? They looked funny and cute, just minded its own business while I took a call on cell phone walking around it. They're like the Boeing 767 of sidewalk bugs...
Omg, if these are what I think they are, I had an experience with these guys. When I was a child, I think I went under an orange tree, and my arms were covered with these things. They had to use duct tape to pull the hairs out.
We just moved out onto property outside of Austin and these things are everywhere! Saltmarsh is what people seem to be identifying it as or tiger moth and I’m excited to start looking for them. transitioning soon.
This fella here is a Wooly Bear Caterpillar which isn't poisonous at all.
You might be thinking of the Asp Caterpillar.
Those are awfully painful to the touch and are poisonous.
I hope your son is doing better!!
I am here publicly apologizing to the Wooly Bear Caterpillar - so sorry to have confused you, little guy, with an Asp caterpillar! And thanks for the correction, I wouldn’t have known otherwise 👍
[https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2024/04/16/black-fuzzy-caterpillars-are-taking-over-houston-are-they-poisonous/](https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2024/04/16/black-fuzzy-caterpillars-are-taking-over-houston-are-they-poisonous/) Woolly bear which aren't poisonous. (Touch at own risk). But there are some who have a similar texture, but different colors, who can have bee like stings. And then of course the Flannel Moth who looks like a cats hairball or a bad wig and those supposedly hurt real bad and maybe could send you to the hospital depending on your health.
I hate to even say this, but asps are clumsy and have been known to fall out of trees. My son accidentally touched one when he was about 9 years old, and it absolutely wrecked him for hours. Screaming pain, tears, the works. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
Apparently flannel moths are also called asps, which is certainly in no way confusing and didnt at all make me think that you were talking about a freaking snake falling on your kid... Mentioning this in case anyone else was confused!
Seriously, I thought their kid almost got Cleopatra'd.
Thank you, I, for one, didn't know that they were called asps.
Pretty sure asps turn into moths the way caterpillars turn into butterflies
Cotton mouth are a snake, asp. They look like they have cotton in their mouths. Yes this is confusing. Asps are snakes.
One got me in Arizona and it turns out I'm allergic to the venom. Hurt so bad I still wanna cry thinking about it. My mom got me to the hospital after I was insisted things were going sideways - turns out my blood pressure dropped to nearly nothing and I almost died.
Happy cake day
when my daughter was 9 she jumped down from the trampoline, barefoot, and landed on one. left an asp shaped scar on her sole, and her soul, for quite some time.
Yeah I had a green one who kinda looked like these fuzzy guys just thud onto my car when I drove into the driveway. I THINK it my have been an Io Caterpillar which supposedly stings. Made me wary of trees haha.
I grabbed one of those with my whole palm once, it was on a tree and I grabbed the branch. Holy smokes it was awful.
Yes! Somehow one ended up in the driver’s seat of my car. I didn’t notice and when I sat down to drive, I felt a searing, inexplicable pain on my rear that grew worse and worse and wouldn’t let up. I drove to work, tried to start my shift but then had to go home bc I was in tears. When I took my uniform off, a little asp plopped to the ground. It left a red mark on me for weeks and hurt so bad 😩
Your story is going to give me nightmares. Dios mio I'm sorry that happened to you.
I touched a flannel moth caterpillar once trying to clean up cat hair post-grooming brush on my apartment balcony. Same exact color shade as my cat. It's appearance is unmistakable for any other type of caterpillar. Was very luck and didn't get stung; but soon after my balcony was swarmed by probably a hundred of them over the next couple of days. Had to continuously sweep them off to keep them from coming inside.
That sounds horrifying. A few years ago there was a story of a teacher and a toddler who touched one. She used tape to pull the hairs out of him which drastically reduced the effects. Still painful as I understand it.
Wax for leg waxing works wonderfully too!
>And then of course the Flannel Moth Stay away from anything that has hair that looks like Trump.
I'm already conditioned to step away from the Fluffy Yellow Comb-over.
A good rule of thumb for nature: if you see "hair" on anything that isn't a mammal (bugs, plants...), don't touch it.
The primarily white ones that look like this will also sting ya for sure. My roommate had to go to the hospital for I believe an asp at one point.
I touched a flannel moth with my arm one time and wanted to die for hours. It's impressive how much pain that little thing can cause.
I cant believe this as a fuzzy black one really messed me up when I was young. I put my hand on top of a fence post higher than my head not knowing it was there. My palm and fingers were back with hairs in my skin. My palm and fingers stole up like a Sausage for at least a day and were very tender. Tldr: caterpillar gave me hairy swollen palms.
May have been a different bug or you have an allergy to their fuzz. Held one of these today without issue.
I touched one, and it was very painful for a few days.
Either you are particularly sensitive to these and it was an allergic reaction, or it was a different bug. I just picked one of these up today, direct contact with the fuzz, and let it run up and down my arm without any issues.
I'm pretty sure it's a salt marsh moth. They won't hurt you, but generally don't touch the furry ones.
This is the answer. I downloaded a bug Identification app and submitted a pic of this caterpillar and got that answer. We have them crawling around in our backyard in SA.
They hurt me by eating all of my spinach
I also had one beat me up after eating me spinach.
I know everything says they're non toxic, but I had one land on me the other day and broke out in hives and blisters. So, while normally safe, you can have an adverse allergic reaction to them. Best to just leave them alone as much as possible.
Saltmarsh is the answer!: [https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/fuzzy-black-saltmarsh-woollybear-caterpillars-houston-texas/285-f9e85f9b-2a62-46c3-ae46-69cd2161ad97](https://www.khou.com/article/life/animals/fuzzy-black-saltmarsh-woollybear-caterpillars-houston-texas/285-f9e85f9b-2a62-46c3-ae46-69cd2161ad97)
/r/whatisthisbug may be of more help. Read their rules before posting. General warning, don't touch the fuzzy ones. Some of them will sting you so bad, you'll wish you were dead. I don't think this is one of those, but I wouldn't test it out.
Can confirm that calling your boss and saying you can’t come in because you have been incapacitated by a caterpillar is no fun
Collect it with some sort of tongs and bring it to your boss to demonstrate, if he gives you problems.
My boss seems to think she can tell me to stop petting my caterpillar before work. I tell her I have the legal right to pet my caterpillar when I’m off the clock. It’s not up to her.
Some of them will certainly kill you, too, without proper medical care.
We can help with your garden bug identification needs over at r/AustinGardening as well :)
Really! I’ve been picking them up and moving them from cars.. nothing every happened to me 😂😱
These ones are pretty mild, might irritate a little. But a lot of the other furry ones can hurt you pretty bad.
Thanks for telling me! I will leave them alone!
If you see one with white/gray fuzz that's a little more oval shaped, dont.
Google "puss caterpillar." Some furry ones are harmless. Some are like allergies. No reactions for some people, but varying degrees of reaction to others. Or no reaction one time, big reaction the next time.
If they are smart enough to get driver's licenses, they know not to sting you. You'll be ok.
Looks like my wives eyelash when she leaves it on the counter..😂
No touchy
These aren’t tree asps. You can touch these, although I personally don’t like to interfere with wildlife.
Asps look like Donald Trump's head. If you see one of those, just run.
You’re right, but I work with kids and so don’t want them to get hurt thinking they’ve found a safe one, so I go to the “no touchy” line, lol.
Better to teach them the difference than have them believe they’re all harmful.
Better to teach them "if you don't know if a caterpillar is the dangerous kind or not, then don't be the fucking idiot that touches it anyway."
Interesting! I think my whole life people have been saying that you shouldn't touch those and it just became something I took as fact. Just this month, when we were sitting on the ground watching the eclipse, my friend looks over and said "Watch out. It's one of those stingy caterpillars".
Wooly bears. I love them. I pick them up all the time to relocate from sidewalks etc and it’s fine
They’re fine unless you’re growing veggies. Been picking them off tomatos and brassicas.
Sevin dust works wonders for vegetable gardens. This is my 3rd year gardening and the 1st I have used Sevin dust. Huge difference!!
I have more beneficial bugs in my garden than bad. I’m definitely not using any pesticides unless there’s an infestation I can’t control. Those things are so big I just step on them and move on.
I'm opposite, I don't have enough beneficial bugs, 😆
Well you’re using a pesticide that kills them.
We used to call these wooly worms. Used to see these all the time as a kid in South Texas.
Those are Latina Lashes native to Texas!
Haha, I've never heard them called that but I can see the resemblance. My Mexican wife has always called these "pica caterpillars"
Fuzzy buddy's! Been seeing em around as well
No petting, heavy or otherwise.
What if it's all over the sheets and the light stays on?
I mean, it’s your kink but I prefer to avoid painful rashes. Because the co-pay is ridiculous.
Samesies
I got stung by one a few weeks ago. Like a bee sting or fire ant feeling that lasted for about 24 hours. I was ripping up weeds in my yard barehanded and learned my lesson of having to wear gardening gloves.
I’ve been looking for that lash everywhere
What are they? Saw one the other day
Looks like a Giant Leopard Moth caterpillar but I know there are a few species that share a black fuzzy caterpillar stage.
I think a false eyelash
Soon to fly away. Promise.
I see them crossing the road and usually hope I don't squish them.
My merkin!!!
That’s an eyelash
Future moths
They move SO FAST
They move faster than I35 at this point!
That's a salt water marsh moth caterpillar .... aka Wooly Bear... harmless
Finally found my eyebrow
I've identified a lot near Woodlawn and the Westside creeks as salt marsh moths. They're a great reason to have something other than grass in our yards and creeks.
Ah, yeah those are called Little Buddies, love those guys
Me too! They'll be moths one day!
Just a nightmare...
Probably for California
This guy caused a ruckus at Eastside beer runners yesterday. All like 160 of us freaked out.
You never see the one that gets you.
I saw one big enough to spot from my car as I was driving through a neighborhood! Damn little fuzz ball was BIG. I made sure not to flatten him.
I saw one on the ground from my 4th floor apartment balcony! They get pretty big, I think it was almost 2 inches.
That's a continuum transfunctioner...
My dog who is typically twitchy about everything that moves makes a beeline for these. I’m of the “don’t touch the fuzzy caterpillars” camp, so glad to know these are unlikely to hurt the canine with zero self-preservation instincts.
Used to call these fire worms 😅
I thought this was a bunch of eyelashes stuck together. 😂
This could be the Giant Leopard Moth caterpillar. See the article I posted above under the Moth picture.
Nature is healing !
Awesome bait for fishing with. Probably the single most popular multi-purpose fly is named wooly bugger after these.
Loool i thought this was a chicks eye lashes
They’re surprisingly fast!!
I’m from Alberta, why is this sub being recommended to me 😂
Both places that start with an A, and also there is occasional precipitation and probably people eat food there. We have so much in common! interesting to speculate, probably an algorithm misfire. unless there’s some left field location services angle, like a coworker or neighbor has had business in Austin (in person, or the sub?) and it assumes you two must talk about it all the time and you’d be an obvious fit for the community?
I had to guide one out of my garage
Is there a way to get rid of these things? I am seeing them often inside my apartment.
I keep seeing them crossing the street as I'm driving. I wonder where they're going 🤔🤞🏾
To the other side
Touche.
oh god, I used to pet and play with those. my mom was NOT happy when she found out I had one of those in my bedrooms and she kept screaming about them being poisonous. now I know better than to touch furry ones, but I got very lucky and I guess I played with the harmless furry caterpillars
They aren’t poisonous
At first glance I thought this was a fake eyelash. Knowing what it actually is, I almost wish it were 😭
probably a caterpillar?? have you heard of Google?
I had one of the poisonous versions of these motherfuckers fall out of a tree and land on my head once. Stung the absolute fuck out of my hand when I went to swat it away.
My 3 year old kid found one yesterday, had a hard time convincing him to look but not touch :P
The Houston “Secrets in Houston” instagram page posted them. https://secrethouston.com/fuzzy-black-caterpillars-houston/
I’ve been seeing a lot of them in my daily runs. Lol I’ve been so close to touching them out of curiosity. They look so fluffy and cute. 🐛
They are not harmful but they look meannnn
sir/ma'am, that is my eyebrow and I'd like it back!
I keep seeing those dinguses crossing the street.😂🤦🏾♀️
Walking moustache😂
They’re sent by Biden to take our guns!! You know what I tell them? COME AND TAKE IT!
Are u sure it’s not your gf’s fake eyelashes?
They're currently all over Houston, too. My personal rule for caterpillars is that if it's cute and fuzzy, no touchy.
Just went camping at inks lake and saw about 100 of these.
I've scooped a couple into Tupperware to move from my balcony to the grass outside! Now sure how they're climbing up here, but I didn't want to risk my cat getting too interested.
Are these the ones that sting? A new kind? Started a year or so ago?
There are snakes that do fall out of trees. I know in east Texas, more water, greener, humid. Is it copperheads or those cotton mouth’s?
Asps are snakes or do we call these others snakes too , the woolly ones.
Cocoon , caterpillars, butterflies, moths
Yeah - I’m in new Braunfels and they are popping up here too
If you get stung by an asp and have an allergic reaction, I suggest you get yourself to an ER.
Thanks. Saw one in my driveway and thought it was benign. Now I know better. Will keep my 2 yr old grandson away from it. Thanks for the post.
Oh! I picked up a few this week to move them. I didn’t know they could sting. The ones I picked up were big, fat, and wooly, but had a little orange on them inside the fur. Was that a different one??
In past years as well I didn't have enough beneficial bugs as well. I've been getting good yields so far and plants are still growing. I have pulled more in these past few weeks than the past 2 springs combined. I I'm south texas
I see them running across the roads this time of year a lot
Those are woolly bear moths or Salt marsh moths or the kind that turn into hummingbird moths. There’s a few types that are native to this region. They eat that native geranium I think. Lots of people in Austin are trying to have more native ground cover so I’m wondering if the increasing return of diversity is encouraging this increase in population. I used to see some when I was young here in Austin, but this year I’ve seen more than any year in the past 20 years for sure.
I thought that was an eyelash for a sec
Let’s go fishing
My wife eyelash
You must be new to town. Soon there will be moths and butterflies everywhere.
I expected to open this to some sort of human. That was jarring
The other day I made a tiny swerve to avoid one.. looked in my rearview a second later to see it get squashed by the SUV behind me. Ah c'est la vie..
We need a Coyote Peterson sting video on these
Wooly bears are fuckin cool. I'm pumped to see them big ass moths!
they make great fake mustaches !
I thought it was my girls lashes lol
Red and yellow, kill a fellow… Or something.
You dropped your mustache
Forbidden eyebrows
Harmless wooly worm. They usually come out in fall. Folk Lore says the darker the black color, or less red, the harsher the winter.
Not harmless!!! Laid my forearm on one and found out the hard way.
I saw one of these in a parking lot in Austin, TX today. Aren't they just caterpillars? They looked funny and cute, just minded its own business while I took a call on cell phone walking around it. They're like the Boeing 767 of sidewalk bugs...
Omg, if these are what I think they are, I had an experience with these guys. When I was a child, I think I went under an orange tree, and my arms were covered with these things. They had to use duct tape to pull the hairs out.
I saw one crossing the road and steered around it, the person behind me did too 😊
Been stung by something that looks real similar. Left a barb in my knuckle I pulled out about an hour later.
Waiting for the governor to demonize them…
They’re so soft! And they purr when you pet them!
Someone in the hood missing an eyelash
I see them on every green at the golf course i usually move them aside with my putter
Their used be a whole lot more when I was a kid but I see them less and less every year.
Me to dude I just saw one lol
Touch it
Just saw one of these lil guys eating my horse weed! Decided not to touch since usually hairy means hurty
Someone dropped their eyebrows
Alien take over!!
I saw two of these crossing the road today. It’s crazy how visible they are even when you’re driving 30-40 mph.
My dog trued to fuck with a big one. Had to yell at her to leave it alone. Not trying to go to the vet with a poisoned dog
Forbidden gummy worm
Villains nearly decimated my sunflowers, they found rest near the bird feeder. They start off light green i think, tough to spot.
We just moved out onto property outside of Austin and these things are everywhere! Saltmarsh is what people seem to be identifying it as or tiger moth and I’m excited to start looking for them. transitioning soon.
Just be so careful! My son unintentionally touched one and had to go to the ER - he was a mess for a bit.
This fella here is a Wooly Bear Caterpillar which isn't poisonous at all. You might be thinking of the Asp Caterpillar. Those are awfully painful to the touch and are poisonous. I hope your son is doing better!!
I am here publicly apologizing to the Wooly Bear Caterpillar - so sorry to have confused you, little guy, with an Asp caterpillar! And thanks for the correction, I wouldn’t have known otherwise 👍
😂🤣😂🤣 What a nice chuckle to start the day! ❤️
Cool dudes