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iNat·84186FamilyInsecta54,033 field observations
  1. Animals
  2. ›Arthropods
  3. ›Hexapods
  4. ›Insects
  5. ›Winged and Once-winged Insects
  6. ›Butterflies and Moths
  7. ›Flannel, Slug Caterpillar, Leaf Skeletonizer, and Allied Moths
New World Flannel Moths
Plate 1 of 9. (c) Luísa L. Mota, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Luísa L. Mota · via iNaturalist

New World Flannel Moths

Megalopygidae

The flannel moths or crinkled flannel moths (scientific name Megalopygidae) are a family of insects. They occur in North America (11 species) and the New World tropics. The larvae are called puss caterpillars, and with their long hairs, resemble cotton balls. They have venomous spines that can cause a painful sting and inflammation lasting for several days. In some cases, the sting may cause headache, nausea, and shock-like symptoms. Perhaps the most notorious for stinging is...

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Where it lives

Recorded sightings

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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.

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Every page naming Megalopygidae in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →

This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 84186.