Does anyone know what these yellow egg things are? This little fella hung around them for a good few weeks untill this morning when I found it on the ground? Any ideas why?
The white things look like the pupae of a parasitic wasp. The wasp laid its its eggs inside the caterpillar and the larvae have been living inside it and feeding on it, before eating their way out to pupate.
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wild edgesThe north west of south east WalesPosts: 8,876
What Alan said.
It's a large white butterfly caterpillar and the wasps below are a main parasite for them.
fidgetbonesDerbyshire but with a Nottinghamshire postcode. Posts: 16,470
Having read that link, it sounds like something out of Alien. 10 days and they should hatch into new wasps. It would be interesting if you could photograph that.
I remember Terry Pratchett commenting that people who get all mushy about the beautiful, caring and uplifting nature of nature, should meditate on the life cycle of the parasitic wasp.
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