Yesterday I finally got to see a tomato horn worm. Reminds me of a miniature manatee in caterpillar form mixed with a smidge of the Loch Ness monster.
The pattern is beautiful. I hope I get to see the flying beauty that will be.
Enjoy your day!
Yesterday I finally got to see a tomato horn worm. Reminds me of a miniature manatee in caterpillar form mixed with a smidge of the Loch Ness monster.
The pattern is beautiful. I hope I get to see the flying beauty that will be.
Enjoy your day!
Very exotic looking!! I’ve never seen one of these before…it’s a little freaky but cool. I wonder what the winged creature would look like and if its horn is meant to ward off predators…?
I think the moth or butterfly is brown in color and the horn is all show these guys are harmless except to my tomato plants:) Luckily I share. Take care, Anna
Reblogged this on CollectiveCompositions! and commented:
What a delightful little fellow.
Hey there! I am glad you enjoyed my pics:) After finging this one guy yesterday, I have since discoved about a dozen or so. I am happy to share the tomato greens, esp. since we do not eat them ourselves. Thank you for visiting my blog. Take care, Anna
I can’t tell if he’s very cute or very terrifying..
I go with cute:) Thanks for looking at my blog. Take care, Anna
Wow! Nice photos! You got some great shots!
Thank you! I am glad you enjoy my pics:) Take care, Anna
A very nice piece of work. I would love to see the metadata on the lens, settings, etc., used. A magical series of images!
Thank you! I wish I could remember the settings and such but I take so many pics it would be a time consuming process. I am glad you enjoyed my photos. Take care, Anna
Great photos, but very destructive creature!!
Thanks for following me! I totally appreciate it!
Thanks for checking out my blog and enjoying my pics. I enjoy your blog as well. Take care, Anna
Nice pattern for a future quilt!
Thank you for the quilt idea! My quilts seem to always stray from the ‘normal’. Take care, Anna
Kinda creepy looking yet exotic. I like your header image, colorful!
I agree with you. Thank you for visiting my blog! The header image is our dump truck painted with old paints. It was an earth day gift a couple of year’s ago. I used the paint to cover the rusting bedliner of our truck and did not throw any paints into our landfill:) Take care, Anna
I thought it was a big dump truck. Nice work!
Thank you! Take care, Anna
It’s a nice one as a matter of information. Thank you for your ‘Like’ on my blog post. I too have done the same thing on yours, and am also following you with immediate effect.
Thank you! Sorry for the delay in response. I just today got your comment. You have a neat blog. Happy to share knowledge. Take care, Anna
Wow! Great pics, great blog.
Thanks for the ‘like’ on my post “The Other Season.”
Peace.
Thank you for visiting my blog. I am glad your enjoy my photography. You have a great site. Take care, Anna
I had a few of these on my tomato plants this summer – but a wasp had laid it’s eggs on the horn worm and made it a host
for the wasp eggs. I wish you could see the picture I took.
Wow! That sounds amazing! I love taking photos of anything neat. Take care, Anna P.S. I wish I could see your photo too!
“There is nothing in a catepillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.” — R. Buckminster Fuller
Great quote! Take care, Anna
oh wow – great pictures, they are so clear! – that hornworm makes me cringe a little!
Thank you for visiting my blog! I am glad you enjoy my photos. I agree with you about the hornworms looks:) Take care, Anna
It gives me goosebumps right now – just because I Have this bias against slimy squishy things. Funny how beautiful things can come out of those worms. Your photos of the worm are gorgeous.
Thank you for coming by my blog and following. It is my pleasure to meet you. 
Thank you for enjoying my photos. The horned worm actually is not slimy and when plucked from the tomato plant pulses like a heart beat. I was a little taken aback the first time I touched one. I love your blog! Keep up the great work:) Take care, Anna
wow great pictures very cute! I like his color and design.
Me too! And just like snow flakes each one is a little different from the others. Take care, Anna
Love its red tail and grocery roller mouth!
Me too! The worms love tomatoes as much as my family! Thank you for visiting my blog. Take care, Anna
What a great visit to an alien world with charm. Thanks!
Thank you! I love your description of my hornworm photos. Thanks for visiting my blog. Take care, Anna
Hi there, thanks for finding my blog and deciding to follow. I hope you enjoy it. Malc
Hey. Your blog is neat and you are welcome. Take care, Anna
Nice work on the clarity of the shots! Keep up the good work!
Thank you very much! My camera is my third eye. Again thak you for stopping by my blog and enjoying my photos. Take care, Anna
Nice pictures! I can never find them that young. I have a great picture of one of these too but mine is covered with trichogamma wasp eggs. The mother wasp lays her eggs on the horn worm and when the babies hatch, they use the horn worm for food/as a host. Wasn’t it Dylan Thomas who wrote, “…nature bloody in tooth and claw?”
Thank you for stopping by and enjoying my photos! And yes the circle of life is quite like as Mr Thomas describes! Simlpy amazing this life! Take care, Anna
Great photos of this little creature, but I think I like your words describing it just as much — very creative!
Gosh, thank you! As you already know pictures are part of my daily life and after seeing this guy for the first time, I could find no better words to describe. I am happy that you enjoy my photos and surprised you paid attention to my words:) I should learn to become a better writer. Thanks agian for the visit! Take care, Anna
Cute little bugger, isn’t it!
Totally! Thank you for stopping by and enjoying my photos. Take care, Anna
Gorgeous looking, but I don’t ever want to see one in my garden
Thank you! This year is the first year for me to see them. My excitement wore off as they consumed many of my tomatoes. Take care, Anna
I’ve heard horror stories about them laying devastation to tomato plants, so not keen on seeing one face to face
. Will have to google what it eventually turns into. Hope you’ll not get to see many more!
You are correct about not wanting to come fae to face with one. I think a type of wasp lays her eggs on the unlucky ones and when larvae hatch they feed on the caterpillar…Take care, Anna
They are beautiful and exotic looking. However, they are very destructive to tomatoes. Great photos.
Agree 100%! This was the first year I have had them invade my garden. First I was in awe of the odd little fellow…then his or her entire family decided to dine on my yummy tomatoes:( I am glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
I love how green this is.
Thank you! I am glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
Lovely, vivid pictures. Move over National Geographic!
Wow! Thank you for enjoying my photos and visting my blog! Take care, Anna
Glad you liked my post on growing tomatoes. Your picture inspired me…put a picture of a hornworm dotted with wasp eggs in my post!
Wow! What a neat picture! Thank you for sharing. Take care, Anna
Fantastic! I saw one of these guys making his way up a Cottonwood this past summer. He was bigger than my index finger! I hadn’t realized this until I saw your post and looked them up but these turn into some of my favorite moths. I actually think moths are quite adorable, despite the terror of the miller moth season. Hornworms turn into the precious little hummingbird moths. Well, I suppose they aren’t little by moth standards. Anyway, great find!
By the way, absolutely beautiful photos. Crystal clear. ( :
Hey there! I am so glad you enjoy my blog! I am lucky to live in a place where my camera can capture such beauty. Thank you visiting my blog and best of luck to you. Take care, Anna
Thanks for the visit and like on my blog. And great shots here! I couldn’t help noticing that there are no tomatoes in view. Has he eaten them all?
Gosh! Not sure why I am just getting this comment today…
You have a neat blog. And yes, they eat green tomatoes…
Take care, Anna
Great pictures!
Thank you very much for visiting my blog! I am glad you enjoyed my photos. Take care, Anna
Read you profile and what you do for dogs makes you a do for people. Live your life to the fullest as you are doing.
coolest little worm ever-! nice captures too !
i read your profile, such inspiring and hearty words! if i may humbly suggest, it would be nice for visitors to access it on a separate page in your blog. like an “about” page so they can leave feedback.
all best-!
Thank you very much! I am not very computer savvy so I do understand what you mean when refering to and ‘about’ page. I an happy you enjoyed my pics! Wish me luck! Take care, Anna
had a quick look at the blog – VERY impressive little wormy guy! and great photography. Will have a more leisurely look later in the next few days and Oh thanks for your Like to my site – appreciated!
Thank you! I am glad you enjoy my photos. You have a neat blog yourself. Take care, Anna
First time I saw one of these guys I about lost my mind!
Great photos!
Me too! I was amazed then quickly okay with plucking them by the hand fulls from my tomato patch:) Thank you for enjoying blog and photos! Take care, Anna
Thank you for following my blog! John
You are welcome. I like your drawings. Take care, Anna
Wow, great photos. What a beauty. Thanks for visiting and the like
Thank you! And I am not sure why I am just getting your comment. So glad you enjoy my photos! You a neat blog. Take care, Anna
WOW! This is just beautiful! Thank you for your like and follow.
Thank you for visiting and checking out my blog and photos! You have a neat blog! Have a great day. Take care, Anna
Pingback: Tomato Hornworm | Progress
What a funky looking creature, excellent photographs too.
I agree with you. At first glance I was a bit taken aback. Thank you for checking out my blog and enjoying my photos. Take care, Anna
‘Devil in the details’….This is AMAZING!!! What equipment /& lens did you use?
You are correct! Thank you visiting and enjoying my photos. My third eye is a five year old Canon digital Rebel XT EOs with my trust EF-S 18-55mm lens. And I copied all of that from my camera just now. I need to learn more about the equipment…take care, Anna
Looking great so far. Keep up the great work!
Thank you! Your photos are beautiful.
nice shots.
Thanks! I am glad you enjoy my photos and adventures in organic gardening. Take care, Anna
I think that’s the kind of caterpillar I saw a bird eating once. It was green and big. The bird had trouble eating it and dropped it. But he was too scared to fly off the fence he was perched on to get it because he saw my cat walking around the yard below him. So the caterpillar got to live — unless the bite the bird did take was its head. I didn’t go look.
I bet that was quite the sight to see! The tomato horn worm is indeed a odd looking caterpillar! Thank you visiting my blog! Take care, Anna
Being artistic takes a person down many adventurous paths. I encourage you to explore all that your imagination opens to you. I have a feeling your 3rd eye will allow you to see more than you ever thought possible. Much like a beautiful worm transforms, you too will transition through your art, relish your changes. Thanks for visiting my site,please come back often.
You are totally correct about the different artistic avenues that are awaiting me. I am alway ready for a new adventure in this great life. The camera takes the lead at times. You have really cool blog! Thank you for taking time to check out my blog! Take care, Anna
very cool!…and they are so BIG! i saw one this summer…i had forgottern how large and beautiful they are.
You are right! I could almost watch them grow as they ravaged my tomatoes! Thank you for visiting my blog! Take care,Anna
Reblogged this on OyiaBrown.
That is a pretty strange looking fellow. I have never heard of one, but I bet that is what got my tomatoes!
Gosh! I am sorry to just now be getting your comment. The tomato horn worm was a first for our garden this year. Strange yet a beautiful pattern. Take care, Anna
Thank you for stopping by my blog and for the follow. I’m looking forward to sharing life on the tip of Africa with you
Great caterpillar pictures!
You are welcome! You have a neat blog! I am glad you enjoy my photos. My camera is my third eye:) Take care, Anna
Aw, thanks Anna. I’m looking forward to more of your posts!
What great photos! This little fella is so beautiful! I would love to make a bracelet like him.
Thank you! I agree he quite the sight to behold! He would make lovely bracelet! Thank for for visiting my blog. Take care, Anna
What a beautiful creature! Love it’s little red tail, makes it look so distinguished!
I agree with you! Thank you stopping by my blog. Take care, Anna
Cool photos of the tomato hornworm. Never thought of photographing one so up close and personal.
Thank you for visiting my blog! I am glad you enjoy my photos! They are so detailed and odd I just had to get some macro shots! Take care, Anna
Hmm, I get these little buggers in the house paddock. Not sure what they’re eating – perhaps they just starve to death looking for a Tomato. Great pic.
Gosh! I am not such how I missed your comment! Thank you visiting my blog. Glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
Thanks for the blog follow, appreciate it! Love your photos and your perspective.
You are welcome! You have neat site. I am glad you enjoy my photos and the vision of my perspective. Take care, Anna
I don’t mind sharing my tomatoes with Mother Nature but why do they take one bite of every tomato on the plant? Loved the pictures!
I hear you loud and clear! Thanks for the visit and I am glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
I just got a couple of these beautiful little critters a couple of days ago…I spent this afternoon photographing them for my blog. Speaking of blogs, you have a great site here…
EC
http://www.macrocritters.wordpress.com
Thanks for the follow! I look forward to seeing more of your photos – love the caterpillar! Bonnie
You are welcome! You have a neat blog! I am glad you enjoy my photos:) The tomato horn worm is quite a sight!
I need to pick my camera back up…thanks for the reminder. Take care, Anna
Great photos which actually made it look cute! Their damage is not so cute however ; – (
Thank you for checking out my blog! I agree with you on both statements! Natural beauty and the circle of life means less yummy tomatoes:( Take care, Anna
Great photos! Welcome! Thank you for subscribing to follow my blog. I hope you are encouraged, inspired and enjoy the photos I take of life’s events as seen through the lens of my camera.
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
Thank you for your kind words! I do enjoy your photos! Thank you, again. Take care, Anna
oh oh! My tomatoe seedlings are too young to understand yet. I’ll warn them when they are a little stronger
you must warn them! this is the first year my garden had the’pleasure’ of meeting the tomato horn worm. thanks for the visit! take care, anna
They might eat through your garden like there is no tomorrow. But Hornworms and their adult counterparts “Hawk moths”/”Sphinx moths” are just so awesome
Agreed! I do not mind sharing our garden:) Thanks for visiting my blog! I am glad you enjoyed my photos. Take care, Anna
Great photos. I have done a few “bugs” here on the Blog. Interesting when you stop and study the detail of the strangers among us!
Thank you! I agree the details are brilliant esp. in nature:) Take care, Anna
Hey Anna, Sorry to post this here but I could find no other contact place. I see you are following my blog Mo-ments or Idle Thoughts;a big welcome!
All the best, Ian.
You are welcome! I am not very skilled with the in and outs of blogging or how to set my blog up properly. Thanks for taking time to check out my blog! Take care, Anna
Really nice work! Thank you, too, for subscribing to my blog!
Thank you! You have a great blog! Take care, Anna
Thanks for dropping my Blog and the ‘Like’ it is much appreciated. I love the Tomato caterpillar do you know the name of the butterfly or moth that it will eventually morph into?
Nice blog BTW.
Hi! You are welcome. This is the first year I have experienced the tomato horn worm in my garden. I cannot remember the moth’s name, but do recall it’s beauty. You have a neat blog and thanks for checking out my blog. Take care, Anna
very cool !
Thanks! Happy you enjoy my photos! Take care, Anna
Great pictures
Thank you! I am glad you enjoy my photos! Take care, Anna
Thanks for following my blog. These caterpillars are impressive, and so destructive to tomato plants! The parsley caterpillar (from a swallowtail butterfly) will also eat a parsley plant to the ground, but it is so pretty!
You are welcome! You have a neat blog! Glad you enjoy my pics! Take care, Anna
You have a neat blog! I love nature and all the details in the circle of life! I am happy you enjoy my photos:) Take care, Anna
OMG! What beautiful pictures!!!! I gotta confess I hate bugs, and worms, but hey, this one is amazing!!
Thank you! I too am a bit leary of bugs and spiders but love the beauty they provide for my camera lense:) Glad you like my bug pics! Take care, Anna
Oh, wooooooow! What a little cutie
I have been wanting to take macro pics but my lens won’t allow me as it is only a kit lens. Someday, I’ll foray into this kind of photography. Thanks for the inspiration.
And thanks, too, for following. I’m “following” you back
Thank you for stopping by my site! I was amazed upon the first sighting of these guys! Macro is one of my favorite types of photography. It is all in the details. Your site is full of great photos! Happy photoing to you! Take care, Anna
Thanks, Anna. I should really get a macro lens. Gotta save as it is very expensive here in my side of the world.
So pleased to have met the horn worm – thanks.
Thank you for visiting my site! And you are welcome for the intro to the tomato horn worm. This year was my first meeting in our garden! Take care, Anna
Those little devils can sure make a mess of a tomato plant. We just use them for bass bait, the fish just love them. Well at least something does. Thanks for your follow and like. Take care keep in touch!
You are so right about the tomato horn worms, yet they are so oddly fascinating. I agree after a while we too start using them for bait:) Gotta love the circle of life! You have a neat blog! Take care, Anna
Muscle,
Great photos of the horn worm. I have tried to get a good photo of the big, beautiful moths that turn into the worms, but have yet to capture a good image.
We grow our own tomatoes because the store-baught ones are about as flavorful as a bite of the shipping box they came in. Having been raised on a farm, I know what a tomato is supposed to taste like ! ; )
We let the tomato worms have their share – they do some damage, but we still get plenty of tomatoes each year. We use no toxic chemicals in our garden at all, and lit the natural predators (birds, spiders, etc.) do pest control. Works for us !
Also – - thanks for liking one of my posts. The stats show that I get lots of visitors, but veery little feedback.
We too let nature be our pest control and share as well from the tiny ant to the local deer. All organic all they way…after all we are what we eat! This year’s garden surprise is love of growing our own sweet potatoes!
You have a neat blog! I helped boosting my stats by reading like minded bloggers site. Good luck and happy growing! Take care, Anna
Thanks for you Like imaginationmuscle
Your tomato grub looks like a Hawk Moth caterpillar
We have Theretra latreilli – Pale Brown Hawk Moth and Theretra oldenlandiae – Impatiens Hawk Moth in the Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve
You are welcome! Thank you for the great information! Yet another reason to blog. Take care, Anna
I love image number five. So sharp. By the way, welcome to my blog as a new follower. I was intrigued to read about you and your perspective on your life. I can’t speak for others, but a transformative truth for me has been that God loves us as we are, not as we should be. Because nothing is as it should be. I lived with an awful lot of childhood shame and guilt until that truth set me free from myself, my “demons” of alcoholism, and fear of the future as I was nearing the end of my 40s. It’s great to read how you’ve been on a journey of your own.
Thank you for visiting my blog. I am glad you enjoy my photos! I enjoy your blog and as a a fairly new blogger have enjoyed the shared knowledge and the global connections. My perspective with life in general will be a continued learning process. I agree we all are as we were intended. My truth is that I would not change anything in my life good or bad because I would not be in the place I am now. Thank you for your words of encouragement and sharing. Take care, Anna
yes, these little devils got about half of my tomatoes…. LOL
Oh, forgot to thank you or visiting my blog recently! I really appreciate it!
You are welcome! You have a neat blog. The little worms arrived at the end of our tomatoe season so I was not terribly upset. Thanks for checking out my site. Take care, Anna
Amazing photo!!! Thank you for stopping by and following!
Thank you! I am happy you enjoy my photos! You have a neat blog! Take care, Anna
These photos are incredibly insane!
And you like my post?!
Thank you
Hope you are having fun blogging?
All the best
So glad you enjoy my phoyos! I have a slight obsession with shoes…100+ pairs…I like the looks like hand painted soles. You have a fun blog! Keep up the great work! Take care, Anna
Like the pix, worm is scary. Would like to see more of your thoughts.
Thanks for checking out my blog! The tomato horn worm looks odd but only harms tomato plants:) As for my thoughts, I have open mouth insert foot syndrome. Thus I let my photos speak more than myself! Take care, Anna
I love your blog.Thanks for checking out mine.Looks like we have similar interests. I have pics of parasites on the tomato horn worm that I should share with you.Much scarier than the worm itself lol. Cheers
Thank you! A wasp of some type lay their eggs on the tomato horn worm for a food source. I bet those are the photos you have. I would love to see them! Take care, Anna
Yes, you are right. I’m in New York for the holidays, but when I get back I’ll see if I can find them. Happy holidays and have a great New Year, Gary
These are gorgeous photos! I love the line of winking eyes down the side of the body…Thanks for sharing these
WOW! Don’t think I’ve ever had the nerve to get that close to tomato worm. I so agree with you, a combination of Loch Ness monster and tiny manatee.
Thank you for your ‘Like’ and especially your ‘Follow’. All the best in the New Year!
Thank you! It was the best description I could muster. You have a neat blog! I enjoy your posts. Take care, Anna
Thank you back!
I bow to you in rescuing little souls needing only love, kindness and a soft place to curl up and sleep.
Treasure the moments we all share.
Oh wow, what a creature! Great captures!
Thank you! It was a first for me:) Glad you enjoy my photos! Take care, Anna
Love your blog! Glad to meet you!
Thanks for the follow. What a majestic hornworm.
You are welcome! I agree with you 100%! Glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
Beautiful! It makes me want to paint it! Very fantasy-creature-esque.
Thank you for stopping by my blog! I agree with you totally! Please paint it! I would love to see your painting! The hornworm is a strange creature. Thus my description of it! Glad you enjoy my photos! My sister-in-law uses water color to paint some of my photos:) Take care, Anna
It is a pretty thing, and you sound like a genteel soul. But here’s a warning: These guys can strip you plants to skeletons in a matter of days. Personally, I get a kick out of plucking them off a plant and throwing them to the neighbor’s chickens. Bawhaaa!
Thank you for the warning! This was the first time for me to see them…and I hope the last! We are building a chicken house. I think I will plant the tomatoes close by:) Take care, Anna
I hate those #$%#! things! Every year, just as my tomatoes are approaching ripe perfection, those little bastidges show up and when I check the plants in the morning, they are nearly just stems. I can’t squish them – too gross, but I throw them waaaaaay out in the yard. I do like the comment about feeding them to the neighbors chickens. Might have to try that next year.
I concur with you! This was the first and I hope the last time I saw them in my garden. I love the photos but the amount of destruction leveled against my poor tomatoes is too much! We will be planting our tomatoes closer to the hen house this year! Warning to you, when you pick them off the plants you will feel creeped out or at least I did. Take care, Anna
Thanks so much for stopping by Bmore Energy, https://bmoreenergy.wordpress.com. What a cool photo–so close up! Sounds like tomato plant lovers aren’t fans but we can’t plant veggies due to the deer herds that consider everything but daffodils salad planted just for them!
You are welcome! You have a neat blog. I am a huge fan of tomatoes but am willing to share with critters too. I feed the deer population corn year round but they still love my carrot tops and sweet potato vines…again willing to share since they allow me to photograph them:) Take care, Anna
Wonderful photos, wonderful blog, wonderful mantra of love on your gravatar. Pleased to meet you, Anna!
Swantje
Gosh! Thank you for your kind words! You have a neat blog yourself! It makes me smile knowing that it is not only I that enjoys this blog:) Take care,Anna
You have a great depth of field in those photo`s it really shows their biology. I haven`t had anything like that this year as I have been growing them in pots on my stoop. the reason for that is the soil is too full of clay in the new garden. we have quite a variety of bugs coming out of the bush but luckily they haven`t started on the tomatoes.They have however eaten most of the leaves on my bush beans.
Thank you for stopping by my blog! Hopefully last year was the last time I take photos of these guys in my garden:) I do not mind sharing, but those little buggers are greedy! Glad you enjoy my photos. Take care, Anna
Great pics!
Great pics. This looks very like a Giant Hawk Moth caterpillar in the UK.
Thanks for passing by my blog and following. Much appreciated.
Thank you! You have a neat blog. Take care, Anna
Anna. Amazing photos. We found one of these in our garden last summer. He was laying waste to our tomatoes. One day the leaves just started disappearing and I couldn’t understand why. It took 15 or 20 minutes to find him, he was so well disguised. Well done on the photos. They are very destructive, but beautiful creatures.
Thank you! I am glad you enjoy my photos! You are right about how destructive and well disguised these little buggers can be! Happy you enjoy my photography and hoping they are not in this year’s garden! Take care, Anna
Amazing photos!!! – I love to do close ups of insects as well – I must say, that these are really breathtaking. Thank you for following my blog so I came across yours as well
Thank you very much! I love details. I hope the encounter with the tomato horn worm was the last! Although a wonderful subject for my love of photography…they laid waste to our tomatoes! You have a cool blog and that’s why I decided to follow. Take care, Anna