Madison

Caterpillars can have a huge impact on the environment as well as the other living creatures in it. This podcast dose an amazing job at discussing the harmful impacts Forest Tent Caterpillars can have on the environment that they are surrounded by. These caterpillars come in groups and cause enormous damage to leaves and trees, however, the trees have a better chance of survival due to their ability to recover in weeks unless they are stressed. Forest Tent Caterpillars also have a part in killing nestling birds that cannot defend themselves. These caterpillars damage the birds eye tissues as well as destroy the leaves these birds thrive off of. The parent birds (Black billed Cuckoos) need these leaves to build nests under which protect the babies from downpours and sunburn. With the increasing amount of damage done to these leaves it leaves the parents stuck as they do not have enough time to re-locate.

Although many people do not write poems about the effects caterpillars have on the environment, I did find one poem that helped me formulate an idea for my topic. This poem briefly talks about the cycle of a caterpillars life which I found interesting as many people do not seem to care much about caterpillars and they only discuss there adult phase; however, toward the end, the poem talks about how caterpillars are often viewed as boring and unimportant but what they become at the end (butterfly’s) is the most special part about them. I think this connects to my topic because some of the caterpillars that I had researched about do not have the best record and tend to do harm on the trees and plants around them as well as harming other. When these caterpillars mature and become butterflies or moths they just mind their business and pollinate plants instead of destroying and eating them in large groups. While I think it’s important not to judge someone solely from there pass self (even caterpillars) I do not think that takes away from the fact that some of these caterpillars, when they are in that stage, can be extremely harmful to the environment. Although their adult stage might be a better version of themselves, it does not take away from the damage or harm they have done to other insects, plants, or humans.

There are many caterpillars that live in the rainforests such as the Lonomia Obliqua Caterpillars that live in southern Brazil. These caterpillars are known as the most deadly type of caterpillars in the world because of their venomous hairs that cause both internal and external bleeding that can affect a person’s kidneys leading to over a thousand deaths since 1989. While these caterpillars are the most deadly, there is no shortage of caterpillars in rainforests that can cause fatalities. Caterpillars such as the Lonomia Obliqua can negatively impact the environment as they cause great harm to humans. Although these caterpillars live a short life, they are able to reproduce fast and have increased in population because of the amount of predators decreasing due to the lack of natural habitats causing them to harm more people as their population never stops growing. While not all caterpillars are poisonous and have positive effects on the environment, there is an increasing amount of poisonous caterpillars as well as caterpillars that have more harmful effects on the environment which outweighs the positive caterpillars in the rainforests.

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Summary of news Article: Cordyceps are a type of parasitic fungi which releases spores that can infect insects causing the fungus to grow inside of them. Unfortunately, this causes the insects to die, however, this also makes them become “zombies” and release new fungal spores. This cordyceps fungus has also been known to infect caterpillars in Tibet that can be used to treat illnesses. The cordyceps fungi contains cordycepin which contains a protein called AMPK that studies have shown can reverse certain types of diabetes, cancer, protect against arterial and heart disease, and extend lifespan. Although AMPK can have positive effects, the cells can also turn the cordycepin into CTP which can cause the cell to die which can be a cause of why the fungus kills the insect. The levels of cordycepin needed to help the AMPK have its positive effects is also too close to the levels that can cause the cell to die, however, cordycepin can still be used as an additive to existing drugs used to treat cancer.

Reaction: After reading the article about zombie insects but more specifically caterpillars, I found this article interesting how insects can have beneficial effects even if it costs them their lives which is unfortunate but beneficial to medicine. When it comes to how caterpillars can be a negative or positive on rainforests it is difficult because while the fungus that kills these caterpillars can also be used to help treat cancer, the fungus growing out of the caterpillars does not have a positive effect on the other insets in the rainforests as other insects who come near the zombie insects can also die as well. This makes the question of if this is positive or negative because it is not the caterpillars fault as they have no control over being controlled by the fungus. Overall, the fungus that grows out of these caterpillars can have a positive effect on humans as it can provide help to medicine to treat cancer, however, this can also be negative as it can harm the other insects that live in that same environment around them.

I chose the design for my blog because the colors help represent my topic well. My topic is about caterpillars and I noticed that the header had butterflies on it which is the adult stage that caterpillars go through. This design for my blog tells the audience that my blog has something to do with butterflies or something that has to do with nature.

If you think my design is cool, you should also see this one!

Caterpillars are the larval stage of butterflies and moths that have a beneficial impact because of the way they pollinate plants. However, caterpillars can have a negative impact on the environment, especially rainforests, because of the harm they do to plants which stunts their growth and can cause them to die.

Are the effects Caterpillars have on rainforest more positive or negative?

Although insects such as butterflies and moths can be beneficial to the environment because of their capability to pollinate plants, in the larval stage of their life, caterpillars feed off of plants which in some ways can be extremely detrimental to the plants stages of photosynthesis. Some caterpillars such as “Cabbage Loopers” become moths, however, before that stage they are known for targeting cabbage plants by eating away at the foliage and stems which can defoliate plants in a short amount of time as shown in the picture. The defloration that caterpillars can cause to those plants can be extremely harmful to the environment as it prevents them from converting sunlight to energy which can cause the plants to die. Caterpillars have a more negative effect on the environment as they can stunt the process of some plants leading them to die off.

https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/help-for-the-home-gardener/advice-tips-resources/insects-pests-and-problems/insects/caterpillars/caterpillars-surface-feeders#:~:text=Caterpillars%20inflict%20damage%20by%20eating,a%20short%20period%20of%20time.

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/environmental/effects-of-defoliation.htm

Caterpillars in the rainforest

Are the effects Caterpillars have on rainforest more positive or negative?

Working thesis: Although caterpillars have many positive effects on the environment once they reach there adult stage and become butterflies, the negative effects they have on rainforests outweigh the positive ones as they are extremely damaging to other plants and humans.