A big hairy affair!

Northern News received several photos of what is called processionary caterpillars this week. These are the caterpillars of the processionary moth and are very prevalent at the moment because of the higher than normal rainfall we had in the Bushveld.
Whenever it is necessary to transfer to a new tree, the worms will move in procession, head to tail, following a leader and leaving a silk trail as they move.
When pupating they spin a silk envelope over the entire group. In this each larvae spins its own cocoon. You should see a large amount of the resulting moths over the next few months as the caterpillars pupate and the moths begin to emerge.