Armor shields, seductive smells, artful
camouflage—such are the physical and behavioral tools wielded by
carnivorous caterpillars. In Hawaii they may hunt disguised as a bit of
bark. In Denmark some live underground, pampered by ants. One Australian
species invades green tree ant nests, devouring the brood. This craving
for prey is highly unusual: Of the roughly 160,000 known butterfly and
moth species, less than one percent eat meat, usually soft-bodied
insects and spiders. Some begin life eating a specific type of plant,
then switch to a particular species of insect. Such complex life cycles
make these carnivores extremely hard to find—and vulnerable to
extinction.
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