A Naif in the Forest by Darrell Berger

Wing Tips to Hiking Boots: Musings of a New, Full-Time Poconos Resident 

We planted milkweed to attract monarchs. Milkweed is the only thing they eat. We have had some. Last week we also had this creature. 

This is a milkweed tussock or tiger moth caterpillar. “Tussock” means tufts of thick hair, “tiger” because of its black and orange stripes. The colors shared by tussocks and monarchs are a defense, announcing to predators they would be wise not to eat them. Milkweed contains a chemical that causes vomiting and in large doses, heart attack and death. 

The tussock moth caterpillar is prey to bats, so they emit a sonic warning signal. They prefer mature milkweed plants. Milkweed grows very fast, a necessity for it to survive being the food source of fast-eating caterpillars. 

Tussock caterpillars appear in late summer or early fall and survive winter in cocoons. In spring a grey moth appears, which I find to be an appealing taupe, with a tasteful black and orange center stripe, like wearing a school tie suggesting the colors of one’s youth. 

The monarch and the moth survive together peacefully on the milkweed. Both are native to the areas they inhabit, though there are several on line questions asking, “How do I get rid of milkweed tussock moths?” Apparently some people prefer the bright and bold monarch to the subtle grays of the moth. Others may simply like butterflies better than moths. While some moths can be troublesome, the milkweed tussock is not among them, unless they are eaten, which means the predator has overlooked both warning colors and sonic discouragements. 

I could not discern the caterpillar’s front from its back, other than by assuming it was moving forward. I found it both beautiful and fascinating in its unusual adornments. I didn’t exactly know what to make of it, whereas the monarch in all its stages is familiar, loved, its presence cultivated. 

Invite the butterfly, the moth also appears. One does not have a more valid claim to the milkweed. One is not more poisonous than the other. The moth and butterfly are not rivals, but neighbors.