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Giant Silkworm Moth
Centro de Informações Toxicológicas de Santa Catarina, public domain, via iNaturalist

Butterflies & moths

Giant Silkworm Moth

Lonomia obliqua Walker, 1855

Names

EnglishGiant Silkworm Moth
Dutch—
SpanishGusano de la muerte
Chinese南美巨蚕蛾
Sranan Tongokapelka (general name for the group)
Scientific nameLonomia obliqua Walker, 1855

About this species

Lonomia obliqua is a species of saturniid moth ("giant silk moth") from South America. It is famous for its larval form, rather than the adult moth, primarily because of the caterpillar's defense mechanism, urticating bristles that inject a potentially deadly venom. The caterpillar has been responsible for many human deaths, especially in southern Brazil. Its venom has been the subject of numerous medical studies. The species was first described by Francis Walker in 1855. Guinness World Records classified Lonomia obliqua as the most venomous caterpillar in the world.

Read more on Wikipedia · Text: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Classification

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderLepidoptera
FamilySaturniidae
GenusLonomia

In Suriname

1Records in Suriname
1iNaturalist observations
2026First record

Where it has been recorded

  • Para1

Districts with at least one record that has coordinates. Shaded districts have records.

Sources & credits

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Related species in Suriname