Yesterday evening, Alan and I were out in the garden (smashing cucumber beetles!). I turned to walk away from him and he told me to stop ... said that I had something on my, uhhhh, bummmm. With his gloved hand, he picked this fella off of my pants.
And I'm so glad he did! See all of the pokey tips? Those are stinging spines, filled with venom!
ACK! Imagine if I'd sat down not knowing what was on my backside!!!
This is a Automeris Io caterpillar. Read about them here and here. If you see one, do NOT touch it without gloves! It will cause you pain!
Remember my run-in with the puss moth caterpillar? Same type of thing.... ouchy-wa-wa!!
Alan ... my HERO!
Oh, and I got stung on the arm yesterday by a yellow jacket wasp. Ouch! That SMARTS!

Wow - you guys have lots of dangerous things in TX. Not so much in OH. :)
Posted by: Tamara W | June 14, 2011 at 10:48 AM
Holy Moly, whoulda thunk it?
Glad your hero was there for ya!
Hugs,
Di
Posted by: Diana Gibbs | June 13, 2011 at 09:10 PM
One thing about it . . . you never run out of new material for your "Bugs & Creepy Crawlies" category of blog posts. :( Sorry for the wasp sting. They're miserable for several days. Hope you got Benadryl cream on it right away. (And ice helps if it starts to swell and itch.) As hot as it is there, maybe you'll just want to climb into an ice bath. :(
Posted by: Shellie Daniel | June 13, 2011 at 09:03 PM
Wow you do have an amazing array of critters and "bugs" around your farm. I'm getting an education about all kinds of things just by reading your blog.
Posted by: Ida P. Krause | June 13, 2011 at 03:54 PM
Oaky, I think the question here has to be: HOW did this get on your uhm, bummmmmm???
I'm just saying................ what was going on in the garden??
Stay cool.......
Manetta
Posted by: Manetta Deggelman | June 13, 2011 at 11:14 AM
You have some of the coolest looking critters on your farm!! Glad you didn't sit on Mr. Caterpillar.
Posted by: Jennifer | June 13, 2011 at 07:55 AM
Yikes - it looks like coral or something from under the sea!! Definitely not something to sit on - how lucky to have a knight in shining armour - or even just a glove - to rescue you.
Posted by: Sabrina | June 12, 2011 at 11:19 PM
Spines...venom...no thanks! OUCH! That would be awful. Sorry for the yellow jacket sting, those hurt, too! I'm glad Alan was there to "save" you from the caterpillar. That would NOT be good! I hope all his friends are "on down the road". They can go live somewhere else, huh?! :D
Posted by: diane mcvey | June 12, 2011 at 01:47 PM
You have officially made my mind up for me....I no longer want to live on a farm! LOL. I never even knew there were poisonous caterpillars. Guess you learn something new every day. Take care. Robin
Posted by: Robin Barwacz | June 12, 2011 at 01:22 PM
Volcanoes blowing, snow until June, mosquitoes buzzing, I'll stay out west where the deer, turkeys, moose, bear and the mosquitoes roam...no thank you for your miserable venemous critters gorge...Love MOM
Posted by: Lori W | June 12, 2011 at 09:34 AM
YIKES!! I hope I never see one!
Posted by: Denni | June 12, 2011 at 08:36 AM
Whew. That was a close call! Many years ago I had his cousin fall from a tree and go down the inside of my shirt. That fella had hairs that released and stung my belly in several spots. OW. A painfull itch for several days. So glad it was only the wasp that stung ya!!! Hugs...
Posted by: Carol Dee | June 12, 2011 at 05:58 AM
The beauty of your photographs belie the danger of that Io. I recently read that a penny (snuggly taped over a bee, wasp, or hornet sting will annihilate the pain within minutes. I'll send you the article if I can locate it.
Posted by: Gabriela | June 12, 2011 at 05:57 AM
Besides being a venomous dude, is he a good bug or a bad bug? Did you crush him after the pics or let him go on his merry way, hopefully eating bad bugs?
Posted by: kathynruss | June 12, 2011 at 05:46 AM
Sometimes I get really envious about your life and the opportunity you have to live on a farm in Texas (my favorite place in the world), with your beautiful garden, fun animals and beautiful wild flowers - - and then I read your stories about snakes, critters and bugs and I realize GA ain't so bad! :) We really do enjoy looking at all your pictures. My daughter just loves to see your blog every day!
Posted by: Lynne Bunn | June 12, 2011 at 04:44 AM
Hurray for Superhero, Alan! I'm glad he was with you! Ewwwwwwwwww on the caterpillar. I had no idea. Wow, Anna! Yesterday was like combat gardening for you. Feel better!
Posted by: Jennifer Woodward | June 12, 2011 at 03:58 AM
Yikes! Good thing he noticed that creepy thing on your butt! Getting stung was enough for one day!
Posted by: Dee in N.H. | June 12, 2011 at 02:52 AM
Ewww!
Posted by: Sherri D. | June 11, 2011 at 09:22 PM