My understanding of these “eggs” is that they are actually tiny cocoons - meaning that the wasps are already pupating. The larvae will have grown up inside the caterpillar’s body and emerged to pupate, so there is no real way to know if there are any more still inside that have not yet emerged. It is sadly likely a losing battle although I’m not actually sure what will happen if the caterpillar lives long enough to pupate with wasp larvae still inside.
I did the same with one when I was a kid. Built a little terrarium for it with a constant supply of fresh leaves, and eventually it made a cocoon inside. I released it once the moth emerged - as you can expect from a caterpillar that size, the moths are huge!
imgur.com
Cecropia moth caterpillar.
Edit: didn’t see the actual tiny eggs, thought you meant the spines!
Very cool, thank you!
Is it possible to remove the wasp eggs to save the caterpillar? Or is it likely already doomed?
My understanding of these “eggs” is that they are actually tiny cocoons - meaning that the wasps are already pupating. The larvae will have grown up inside the caterpillar’s body and emerged to pupate, so there is no real way to know if there are any more still inside that have not yet emerged. It is sadly likely a losing battle although I’m not actually sure what will happen if the caterpillar lives long enough to pupate with wasp larvae still inside.
Ah, I see. Well thanks again for the great information! We have put it aside to see if it is able to finish!
I did the same with one when I was a kid. Built a little terrarium for it with a constant supply of fresh leaves, and eventually it made a cocoon inside. I released it once the moth emerged - as you can expect from a caterpillar that size, the moths are huge!