Woolly Worm Time in North Carolina

People have been using woolly worms to predict winter since pioneer days. To determine the severity of the winter, you look at the brown band of color on the woolly worms, or pyrrharctia isabella. The thinner the brownish-red ban, the harsher the winter will be. If the colors on the wooly worm in our yard are a prediction, winter will be pretty mild this year. Much brown, little black!

If you are fascinated by this topic, then consider attending the 33 Annual Woolly Worm Festival, just west of Boone, in Banner Elk North Carolina the third week in October. Last year's winner of the Woolly Worm Race was a young boy from Chapel Hill. Maybe we'll pack up our woolly worm and head west!

We're sharing this with Camera Critters and Weekend Reflection.

Comments

[Dina]

No kidding!
This whole photo is beautiful.

We Heifer Ranch volunteers entered our toad in the races at the Toad Suck (Arkansas) festival, but I never heard of woolly worms.

[RamblingRound]

So glad that the wooly worm is predicting a mild winter!

[Nefertiti]

magnifique photo,bravo :O)

[jabblog uk]

Let's hope the woolly worm has got it right :-) Cute little beastie.

[Eileen]

Cool critter and thank God. I am really hoping for a mild winter this year. After last winters back to back snowstorms and 60 inches of snow I could go without winter for a long time.

[Denise]

Fascinating post, never heard that about the weather prediction before. Lovely shot!

[VioletSky]

He is so cute.
And this sounds like a lot of fun for everyone. I hope no overly zealous 'environmentalists' decide that it is all so cruel to the caterpillers and try to shut it down (we had turtle races in a small town near here that were in jeopardy after a story about them in a big city newspaper).

[Kay]

It looks as if the woolly worm is on an ice-covered branch. I've never heard about them predicting the winter weather before. Interesting.

Kay
Alberta, Canada

[Greensboro Daily Photo]

Kay: The woolly worm is on the edge of our bird bath.

I'd always heard about their predicting the severity of winter but just learned that more brown meant milder!

[Nikki-ann]

A wonderful shot. I didn't know there was such a thing as a Wooly Worm Festival or a Wooly Worm Race! Hehe.

[Everyday Melbourne]

Lovely ! so beautiful color and cute creature !

[James]

Oh wow that is so cool! I didn't even notice the reflection at first but then it was there. I think its neat the way the pink and green reflection wraps around the water line.

[ann chin]

where is the head and where is the tail?

[ming the merciless]

I love caterpillars. They are so otherworldly but yet beautiful and interesting.

[Karen]

I know that this is two months past the post, but boy, did that wooly worm miss the mark!

I was searching for a past article in the News & Record about NOAA predicting a milder than normal winter for us here when I came across this post. Everyone screwed up in their predictions - NOAA, the local news and this worm.