Crazy Legs, but Those Aren't Legs

I came across this guy in my garden last June.


(Click on images to enlarge)

My insect ID app was stumped. I just thought of him as "Crazy Legs."

Just recently, somebody on the "All Bugs Go To Kevin" Facebook page posted the same creature, and that's how I got an ID: it's a Crowned Slug caterpillar.

And those crazy legs aren't legs. They are stinging hairs. I'm glad I didn't try to pick him up and find that out the hard way.

He has probably already turned into the moth he was destined to be, but I will always think of him as Crazy Legs.

Here's a side view:



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I have been getting my new computer up and running, with all my huge stock of images, documents, and conveniences. It's a process. I hope to be more productive once I don't have to wrestle with a computer that operates in GEOLOGICAL TIME.