Since mourning cloak adults overwinter, they are one of the earliest butterflies to appear, and regarded as a sign of spring. A Truly Helpful Caterpillar Identification Chart. This caterpillar turns into the beautiful Mourning Cloak butterfly. It will also tell you which caterpillar is not to be tampered with since some of … The wingspan of the mourning cloak is 3 to 3.5 inches. Larvae feed on foliage of elm, cottonwood, hackberry, and willow. When it is at rest on a tree with its wings folded, it is perfectly camouflaged! Butterflies have a wingspan of around 3 inches and are almost always the first butterflies encountered each spring. The “mourning cloak” refers to their dominant wing color, dark rusty red bordered with black—though it’s lightened with blue jewels and cream-colored edges. Description: This spiny, black-and-red caterpillar cannot be confused with any other. You can identify these stinging caterpillars by the row of bright red or orange dots on their back. Its body is black with numerous white flecks and a row of red spots down the back. Spiny elm caterpillar poisoning: Contact with the poisonous hairs or spines of the Spiny Elm caterpillar can cause skin rashes or even a hypersensitivity reaction in some cases. The Day It Rained Mourning Cloaks Mourning Cloaks Butterflys - Nymphalis antiopa. Stinging caterpillars share a common defensive strategy to dissuade predators. More detailed information about the symptoms, causes, and treatments of Spiny elm caterpillar poisoning is available below. The spines stick in your finger, then break away from the caterpillar's …

The Spiny Elm caterpillar (Nymphalis antiopa) is a striking type of spiny black caterpillar.These black caterpillars from the Nymphalidae order can grow up to 2” (5 cm) in length. Mourning Cloak, Nymphalis antiopa. The mourning cloak is one of a number of Manitoba butterfly species that overwinter as adults. No, you're not seeing things. When you see it, don’t touch it; the hairs break and release noxious chemicals that can cause nasty rashes. There are several species of caterpillars all around you. The full-grown Spiny Elm Caterpillar is about two inches long. Each hollow setae funnels poison from a special glandular cell. By Damian Fagan. What you're probably seeing, flying over the last snow banks of winter, is a specimen of one of Manitoba's most common butterflies, the morning cloak (Nymphalis antiopa). A caterpillar identification chart will help you identify and distinguish one caterpillar from the other easily. It has ragged, scalloped maroon-brown wings with bright blue spots edged by a band of yellow at the edges. All have urticating setae, which are barbed spines or hairs. Spiny elm caterpillar poisoning: Introduction. The day it rained Mourning Cloak caterpillars, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.