Question
QUESTION: I have found an unusual caterpillar that i have never seen before, i cant find a picture of it anywhere on the Internet. it is a very light clear blue, so clear that i can see its insides and has a black and white striped head. its starting to sew some leaves together using its mouth and what looks like a sticky silk substance, but its on a branch in a bug catcher i am worried what will happen if it builds a cocoon on the leaf incase the leaf dies because its not planted will it die too?.....
I am curious to know what kind of caterpillar this is as i teach children and would like to tell them all about it and let them see it grow..... hope you can help!
Thanks, Emily.

ANSWER: Without a picture it is very difficult to ID a caterpillar. I would guess that is is one of the leaf roller caterpillars. Here is a web link to some in that area. http://www.brisbaneinsects.com/brisbane_daymoths/LeafrollerCaterpillars.htm  

The leaf it is on will more than likely die but the whole plant will not unless all the leaves are infested. The moth is not very pretty. The female will lay its eggs on the leaf and when the egg hatches the small caterpillar spins a web and folds the leaf over its body. They eat the leaf. You can expect small pellets of frass to drop from the leaf as it feeds.  Most of the leaf rollers have one life cycle per year so they are not that big a problem.

I hope this is what you were looking for..the exact leaf roller species would be difficult to ID without pictures and the species of the plant it is on.

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blue caterpillar   QUESTION: Here is a picture of the caterpillar before it wrapped a corner of the leaf over itself. it has only come out once to eat some leaves, now it seems to be sleeping inside the wrapped up leaf, which i dont know the name of but its from one of those trees that have the big red hawaiian type flowers on it....?
So it will either lay eggs or turn into a moth? do you know roughtly how long will it stay inside the leaf?
thank you so much for all your help!
Emily

Answer
IF it is a not feeding then the caterpillar has entered the pupae stage. Moths and butterflies have a life cycle called complete metamorphous--their shape completely changes from a caterpillar looking to a winged moth or butterfly. The intermediate stage is a pupae or cocoon. This sounds like what is going on here. The time in a cocoon varies depending on the species, weather et. I would guess about a month or six weeks would be usual. During that tine they do not feed but change into a moth or butterfly, The eggs are laid by the moth or butterfly soon after they emerge. The adult will not feed but the only purpose is to lay eggs. Eggs usually will not hatch until the spring as new foliage buds out.

The best I can determine is this will be a butterfly called Montane Ochre Skipper, Here is a web link to more information and pictures. http://lepidoptera.butterflyhouse.com.au/hesp/phig.html