New Caterpillar Found in Hawaii Wears Dead Bugs and Lives With Spiders

Scientists have discovered a rare and ancient lineage of caterpillar in Hawaii that wears the “bones” of insects as a form of camouflage. Researchers from the University of Hawaii at Manoa detailed their discovery in a paper published Thursday in Science. The caterpillar—which they’ve dubbed the “bone collector”—uses the disguise to live hidden within a spider’s web, where it can prey upon other small bugs that get stuck inside. Unfortunately, the unique caterpillar’s continued survival is likely under threat, since it’s only known to exist on a single mountain range on one Hawaiian island. Caterpillars are the larval form of butterflies and moths, which are members of the insect order Lepidoptera. These insects nearly always feed on plants, with less than 0.13% of caterpillars known to be carnivorous (the lowest percentage of any insect order); that alone makes the caterpillar unusual. Somehow, though, its way of life gets even stranger. Lead researcher Daniel Rubinoff and his team ... Read full article.