Parasitized Caterpillar

Moved

Moved from ID Request.
Maybe someone will offer an opinion on the caterpillar ID if they see it in the caterpillar section. If it's not an Acronicta, this would be my other thought:

… Charley Eiseman, 25 February, 2011 - 10:21am

Moved

Moved from Stigmata mummy-wasp.
Sorry, I missed at first that you were mainly looking for an ID of the caterpillar (which may or may not be identifiable beyond Noctuoidea--I think it may be an Acronicta though?). Aleiodes stigmator is a braconid wasp that mummifies hairy noctuoid caterpillars, and it is the only gregarious "mummy-wasp" in the eastern US--so the multiple exit holes identify this species as the parasitoid.
You didn't ask for an ID on the person in the third image, but I'm guessing Brett Engstrom.

… Charley Eiseman, 14 February, 2011 - 4:13pm

Hi Charley, This is great.

Hi Charley,

This is great. Many thanks! And you nailed the ID on Brett! I've notified him. Thanks again.

Best,
Bryan

… Bryan Pfeiffer, 14 February, 2011 - 7:40pm

Moved

Moved from ID Request.

… Charley Eiseman, 14 February, 2011 - 4:12pm

Parasitized Caterpillar

Thanks again, Charley. Here's my blog post on the matter:
http://www.dailywing.net/2011/02/22/holy-caterpillar/

… Bryan Pfeiffer, 25 February, 2011 - 10:52am

Thanks for the link

I saw that you thanked Dave Wagner at the end. Did you get his thoughts on the caterpillar? I would certainly defer to his opinion on the ID.

… Charley Eiseman, 25 February, 2011 - 11:03am

I didn't communicate directly

I didn't communicate directly with Dave, but he wrote this to a colleague here in VT:

“There are a lot of rogadine braconids, especially Aleiodes that attack Acronicta and chew out holes in the body. Generally the holes are smaller relative to the host length--see attached. Suppose that is what they have to be.”

... and attached the Acronicta photo that's on the cover of the FHTET guide.

… Bryan Pfeiffer, 25 February, 2011 - 11:23am