300. That is how many little Acronicta hastulifera caterpillars hatched this weekend (click here to see the mother). Actually, there were probably more than 300, but I stopped counting.

Developing eggs, two days before hatching.

Lots of little first instars.

As you can see by the giant holes in some eggs, many of them ate their egg-shells before wandering off.

Babies on their host plant, alder (Alnus). Exploring a bit before settling down to eat.

The big hatching event happened on Sunday. It’s a good thing I came into the lab, because by Monday they would have been dead without food. I then became incredibly nervous that I might not have given them the right host plant, but they have been producing a large amount of frass (poop). Hurray! I get so protective of my caterpillar babies. This is what they look like today:

Frass machines.

They are going to become wonderfully fuzzy caterpillars as they grow. I can’t wait!