Quote:
Quote:
‘Tis the season for Monarch Butterfly Migration
I swerved to miss several caterpillars on my way up north last weekend. Saw several in the woods too.
Kooty, I’m not sure if you know this or not, but a caterpillar (insect) isn’t like a deer. It won’t damage your SUV.
PS you shouldn’t swerve for deer either. 
It was good karma cuz that doe at 35 yards is now sitting neatly packed in my freezer.
One down. 
Were they wooly bear catipillars? Did you notice the band? I want to know what kind of winter we are in store for. 
Mostly black and orangeish/redish color. Very hairy looking.
Just looked up the wooly. Yup, those were it. Lots of them last weekend on the roads.
They come out in full force this time of year.
So what do they tell you about winter?
that it will “officially” begin in about three months
And it will be over in about 6 months?
Weather By Caterpillar @ farmersalmanac.com
by Peter Geiger | Monday, September 8th, 2008 | From: Blog
Last week we mentioned the weather-lore surrounding persimmon seeds. As the legend goes, if you cut open the seed and clearly see the shape of a spoon, a harsh winter with heavy wet snow. Is supposedly on tap. Many of you have shared that a spoon is what you are in fact seeing. (A fork shape denotes a mild winter with light powdery snow, and a knife shape indicates an icy winter with cutting winds.) .
In February, we look to a groundhog for a weather prediction, but at this time of year, many of us (after we of course consult the new edition of the Farmers’ Almanac) look to a fuzzy little caterpillar which makes its appearance early fall each year. (They actually appear in the spring as well but seem to go unnoticed at that time of year.) These caterpillars, often referred to as Woo l ly W orm or Woo l ly B ear have a special ability (supposedly). Depending on the color of the bands, you may or may not be in for a rough winter.
As folklore goes – you need to look at the black hairs at each end of this tiny creature. Legend has it that the more black hairs a wooly bear has, the worse off the winter. If the caterpillar has more orange, then the winter will mild.
Some folks have taken this to an extreme. Supposedly there are thirteen segments in a typical banded wooly bear, and many people believe that each segment represents one week of winter. Orange segments predict mild weeks, and black ones foretell bad winter weather.
Others also look at the thickness of the hair – thick means bad and sparse a mild one.
One more weather believe surrounding this tiny weather forecaster revolves around the direction it’s coming from when found. If the wooly worm is traveling north, count on a mild winter. If he’s headed south, get ready for a long cold winter.
Have you noticed these weather predictors crawling around your yard or sidewalk yet? If so do share with us here so we can compare it to the persimmon seed outlook.
By the way, if you are a caterpillar enthusiast, make plans to attend the Woollybear Festival on October 5th, 2008 in Vermillion, Ohio. Longtime friend and Fox 8 Meteorologist, Dick Goddard champions the largest one day festival in the State of Ohio. Think of it, 100,000+ cheering on woollybear caterpillars who are strutting their stuff just before the arrival of winter. Join the fun!
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
