Woolly caterpillars and an omnious winter

The last couple days have been gorgeous. I could stand a couple more weeks of sunny days.

Since I was just a wee lass (my terrible Scottish brogue rears its ugly head) I have heard the the tale about Pyrrhaclia isabella. Don't ask me how to say that -- I was barely able to spell it.

Normal people call it the woolly caterpillar. Eventually the woolly caterpillar becomes the Isabella Tiger Moth. But as a woolly little caterpillar, it is a barometer of the winter weather to come. Or so the stories go . . .

Supposedly, the wider the black bands on the woolly caterpillar (or the narrower the brown band) the harsher the winter. Which means more snow, colder temperatures, and possibly a longer winter.

Apparently, this tale has been around for ages. In fact, in 1948, the curator of insects from the Museum of Natural History in New York started an eight-year study -- during his vacations, no less -- to prove or disprove the folktale. He basically picked up every woolly caterpillar he could find and did some scientific tests -- measuring and recording. He concluded that the caterpillars wintery predictions were 70% accurate. Not bad for an insect. Better than most meteorologists, in fact.

All this to say that the caterpillars here seem to be less tan and more black this fall. And you know what that could mean -- more snow, colder temperatures, and possibly a longer winter. Hmmm . . . hopefully this winter the caterpillars will be 30% inaccurate.

Maybe?