Now is a good time in the year to find a common and well-known caterpillar. The Woolly Bear is black at both ends and reddish-brown in the middle.
There are two generations of caterpillars each year (May and August). The second generation is the one noticed in late Fall when Woolly Bears are often seen crossing roads, usually in great haste, as if they have someplace special to go.
They are scurrying to find a sheltered location under plant debris, where they will spend the winter as a larva. In the Spring they will feed briefly before changing into a cocoon and eventually a moth. I found one on my deck in one Autumn and put it in a jar in my garage. In early Spring it had formed a cocoon.
The adult is known as the Isabella moth. Eggs laid by the female moths start the cycle over again. The adult moth has cream colored wings with scattered black spots – its wingspan is about 2 inches. This moth emerged from the cocoon above a few weeks later.
The Woolly Bear is the species mentioned in winter-prediction folklore that claims the longer the black at the ends of the body, the more severe will be the coming Winter. This one seems to be predicting a very mild Winter.
Each year Vermilion, Ohio holds an annual “Woolly Bear Festival” – claimed to be the largest one-day festival in the state. Festivities include a parade, Woolly Bear races and an “official” analysis of the woolly bears and forecast for the coming Winter. Other states have “Woolly Worm” festivals for similar caterpillars.