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Is this hornworm ready to die, or cocoon or something?
Or are there actually black hornworms??
It is still alive in the photo.
Just curious about it, as I've never seen a black hornworm before. (well, I haven't seen ANY hornworms since I was a kid actually. This one belongs to a friend in California)
Thanks everyone!
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Kim
Hi Kim,
There are many different species of hornworm throughout North America, however, the one in the photo looks like it is dying or dead. Due to its markings it is either the tomato or tobacco species.
Hornworms do get darker - sort of a reddish/brown, their skin get's tighter and they shrink a bit but they don't get "black." If your friend is raising them as feeders I would remove that one immediatly (and any others that don't look good) so that nothing is spread to the others. She/he may want to clean the whole set up.
here is a link of the first instar pupa to pupation. the collor is a little more "blue" than they really are but it is great as to what to expect.
lele 
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 green anoles Jaida & Jetta
0.1 brown anole - Jamaica
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
Thanks lele, very helpful as always!
My friend thought this was a different morph of hornworm or something. But, I thought the idea was for them to blend in with their surroundings, which is why they are usually green...to blend with the leaves.
I'll have to ask her if it's still alive or not...just out of curiosity.
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Kim
Kim-
I have received various colored Hornworms from dark green to almost blue. I have never seen a black one yet other then when dead. From the photo the black hornworm doesn't look shriveled up but rather still alive. When they start to die or pupate they will shrivel up and become tough not soft and smooth like the green one in the photo and the black one looks just like it, just another color. Either way they are great treats, I just had some moths hatch and they love them. I put them in the cage right after the moth emerges to dry it wings, and the flapping attacks the chameleon. You may want to try some with you picky eater. (Sorry LELE but my chameleons love there hornworms!) Hope this helps!
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John W. Lucas
Feeding Baby Chameleons
Caging Baby Chameleons
F. pardalis
Ambilobe Locale
Nosy Be Locale
Sambava Locale
Rhampholeon uluguruensis
Eggs Incubating-
F. pardalis - Ambilobe Locale
Photo © Chameleon Paradise 2003
I would love to be able to get my (gloved) hands on some hornworms!
I have never seen them for sale here though. I haven't even seen them in the "wild" since I was a kid. I scoured tomato plants this summer hoping to find some...and none were to be found. I was more just curious to see if I could find any. I know they can't be fed to Zoe straight off of a tomato plant.
He's SO afraid of insects now. Even crickets. He cowers from them. I have tried coating them in ground peas and spirulina, tried "starving" him then offering crix, both free range, and in a bowl. I have offered mealworms, wax worms, silk worms and silkworm moths too. I tried coating the crickets, and the silkies in both powdered and paste form repta-aide. I just don't know about him. He hides up in the corner of his cage until the big bad bugs are taken out. That's part of the reason why I wonder if he's going senile or something. I could just imagine if I put something the size of a hornworm in there with him. He'd probably start to cry!
He's a strange fellow, my Zoe.
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Kim
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