Caterpillar Of Spicebush Silkmoth

October 9, 2025

The caterpillar, or larval stage, of a Spicebush Silkmoth (callosamia promethea). The host plants of these moths are Spicebush (Lindera benzoin), Sassafras (Sasssafras albidum), Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipfera), Sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), White Ash (Fraxinus americana), Lilac (Syringa vulgaris), Black Cherry (Prunus serotina), Birches (Betulaceae), Maples (Sapindaceae), and Lindens (Tilia).

As adults these Silkmoths live for 1 to 2 weeks, eating and drinking nothing. During that short time they depend on energy stored during their larval stage. Their purpose during this stage in their life is to mate and lay eggs, enabling another generation to live.

One hefty caterpillar.

_______________________

If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email, sign up here!

 

Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.