The Lingering Death of a Hornworm
Tobacco Horn Worm - Manduca sexta - Carolina Sphinx and Cotesia congregata a Parasitic Wasp
Basically the wasp (Cotesia congregata) lays eggs inside of the caterpillar (Manduca sexta). The eggs hatch into grubs and start to eat the caterpillar. The grubs prevent the caterpillar from metamorphosing into a moth. When the grubs are ready to metamorphose into the adult wasps; the grubs borrow out through the caterpillar’s skin, attach to the exterior of the caterpillar and spin a cocoon. Several days later a tiny wasp, clips open the cocoon from the inside and emerges. He or she cleans off his or her wings and leaves to look for a mate and another Hornworm. The caterpillar dies after the wasps have flown away, never changing into an adult moth, which while bad for the caterpillar is good for those of us that like to garden.
Sizes: The Hornworm is 60mm long, cocoons are approximately 4mm long and the body of the wasp is approximately 3mm long.
Technical drivel: Camera used Canon 5D with the Canon 100mm Macro lens used for the full caterpillar and the MP-E 65mm macro lens used for the life-sized and larger images. Lighting was a combination of the MT-24EX twin lite flash and a 550EX flash used as a slave.
Click on any image to see a magnified view.
-Jim
Most of the wasps have left the caterpillar.
But not this one, he's on his way out.
Little closer view starting to spin a cocoon.
Obligatory head shot, Ouch! That's got to hurt.
Wasp grub has attached to the exit wound of the caterpillar.
View of the exit wound.
After two days the wasps are visibly darker inside the cocoon.
View of a single cocoon.
Surprise! Most of us hatched last night.
I'll pose for you.
And I will pose too.
A little bit of cleaning and I'm gone too.
I'm off.
Finally, freshly emerged and cleaning off the wings.
I'm ready to go.
All images ©2009 James L. Kramer