I have had a problem with caterpillars like the one in the photo eating my plants, these guys can destroy many large plants in one night ! I have looked everywhere on the internet to find out what type of butterfly or moth they turn into but cant find any quite like this one ? Thais say they are quite common, has anyone got any info ?

I've got those buggers too. They can strip a plant in one day. They really seem to enjoy my crepe jasmine and my small growing lemon trees.

Not sure what they turn into, but they are big and hungry

I have had a problem with caterpillars like the one in the photo eating my plants, these guys can destroy many large plants in one night ! I have looked everywhere on the internet to find out what type of butterfly or moth they turn into but cant find any quite like this one ? Thais say they are quite common, has anyone got any info ?

this might be helpful:

so theres two old farlangs in pattaya, best of mates for 40 years, anyway so one dies and the other one is gutted and no friends, so he thinks right ill get a dog.

so off he trots pattya klang pet shop, "how much for that dog', thailady '10,000 bhat mister''!

'never' cheap charlie replys, 'ok 8000 bhat mister', 'never' says pum pooy farang, 'how much that cat', thai lady '3,000', 'never' says falang 'how mutch that rabbit,' '1000' says poor thai lady, 'too mutch' speak farlang, so just as hes leaving the shop thai lady gets a calculater and a catapiller and says 'ok farlang this one for you is a real centipede and i give you free match box for condo for him and you can have for 500 bhat', 'ok' he says and off he trots back to view taly with his new friend.

sat at home he thinks my catapiller hasnt spoke to me so ill try be his fiend and take him out, so he taps on the matchbox and says catapiller im off for a drink do you want to join me? no reply, so he has a cig on balcony looking at the building works thats not happening and thinks ok ill try again so back inside, taps on matchbox and says, ok im going for a drink on soi 6 if you want to come, still no reply, so he sits on his washing machine in the front room and has a cig again, thinks right last time, taps on the matchbox and says im off out for a drink to soi 6, then on to walking street and maybe if ive got enough money left have some food now do you want to come with me, the matchbox opens and the little centipede says i heard you the first time im still putting my f@ckingg shoes on!

Any good garden supply place will sell you some spray that kills the blighters.....

But you have to keep using it of they will come back!

Any good garden supply place will sell you some spray that kills the blighters.....

But you have to keep using it of they will come back!

.................

Yes thats one answer to it, but I think just mooving them on is more my style, Thanks all the same !

I pick em off with a stick and sling them in my neighbors weed patch

Surely those aren't the caterpillars real eyes. They look like some comedy catoon drawn on ones.

Off topic, we have over the years collected many caterpillars and tried to hatch them into moths or buttterflies (for the daughters entertainment and education - not for profit) all have failed miserably except the one that hatched from a cocoon into a moth. We found it about 2 weeks after we had started that one off. I had to call a halt to it after that. Poor Mothy - we gave it a cremation though

Surely those aren't the caterpillars real eyes. They look like some comedy catoon drawn on ones.

Off topic, we have over the years collected many caterpillars and tried to hatch them into moths or buttterflies (for the daughters entertainment and education - not for profit) all have failed miserably except the one that hatched from a cocoon into a moth. We found it about 2 weeks after we had started that one off. I had to call a halt to it after that. Poor Mothy - we gave it a cremation though

Yes with those copy eyes I thought it would have been very easy to find this caterpillar on the internet but it's not the case. here is a photo of the plants that they realy like to eat !

There's a caterpillar shown on this link http://butterfly.nss.org.sg/home/ named as Moth Rhynocholaba acteus

The colour is greener possibly due to the background. This caterpillar has the stripes like the one in your photo and the same number of blue ringed circles along its side. The false eyes are partly obsured as the caterpillar was moving. The visible area does show the same speckled appearance as the one in your pic.

I hope that gets you closer to identifying it.

I think you'll find they are elephant hawk moth caterpillars. Try doing a google image search.

They normally alert me to their presence by leaving great piles of cr@p under their food plants. I don't want to resort to sprays but these b*ggers are pushing their luck. Do they have natural predators? I've left them in the open before but have yet to see birds take them.

If you have the space , ducks are good gardeners . let them out for a run in the evenenings and they will take care of the caterpillars with minimal damage to the actual plants or fruit . they do leave the a little bigger mess with their droppings than the caterpillar though . If they don't work out , you can allways eat them .