Saddleback Caterpillar Control: How To Get Rid of Saddleback Caterpillars

This page is a general saddleback caterpillar control guide. Using the products and methods suggested, you will get control of saddleback caterpillars. Follow this guide and use the recommended products, and we guarantee 100% control over saddleback caterpillars.

If you're a homeowner and avid gardener, you might have stumbled upon a saddleback caterpillar. This insect is mainly brown and green and has a back mark resembling a saddle. While the average caterpillar has few harmless and superficial spines on its body, the saddleback caterpillar has spikes that can sting.

These hairs are mainly self-defense. They can prick the skin and release poison to anyone who dares touch the saddleback caterpillar. Usually, a homeowner gardening outdoors will encounter a saddleback caterpillar and get stung by its hair while picking up leaves.

Saddleback caterpillars are dangerous because with a single touch of one of their spines, you will receive a powerful sting greater than a bee or wasp sting and, in many cases, cause severe allergic reactions that need professional medical attention.

If these stinging caterpillars have become a problem in and around your home, our DIY guide below has the solution to ensure it’ll be the last rodeo for those saddleback caterpillars.

Identification

Before you can proceed with treatment, you must be sure that the pest you are dealing with is a saddleback caterpillar and not some other insect. Misidentification can lead to using the wrong treatment methods and products, which can end up being a waste of time and money. Here are some identifying characteristics of saddleback caterpillars:

• Unlike your average caterpillar, the saddleback caterpillar can be easily identified because of its unique appearance.
• Ranging between 1.2 to 20 mm long, saddleback caterpillars are two-headed slugs with heads on opposite ends of their bodies and a distinctive mark in the middle of their backs, a mixture of dark purple and brown.
• The mark consists of a large dark purple-brown oval with a thin white border in a block of lime green. The green rectangle resembles a saddle blanket, which is how they earned their name.
• The saddleback caterpillar's vivid, bright coloring may be loud and attention-grabbing, but its outlandish look warns predators that it is poisonous and will sting to protect itself.
• Saddleback caterpillars are covered with venomous, spiky brown spines, which can cause pain and swelling if they sting you. While a saddleback sting can't kill you, there are some additional side effects from a sting, such as nausea.

Use the description above to help you properly identify the saddleback caterpillar on your property. If you are unsure, contact us; we will try to help you get the correct identification.

Inspection

Once you have confirmed that you are dealing with saddleback caterpillars, you must inspect them to find out where they are feeding and what attracts them to the area. When doing the inspection, make sure to wear gloves and long clothing and use a stick to search around bushes and plants. If you find any, you can drown them in a bucket of soapy water.

Where To Inspect

Saddleback caterpillars rarely make their way indoors. They will most likely be found outside near gardens and flower beds. Like most caterpillars, the saddleback caterpillar eats the leaves of many plants and trees so that you may see them in your yard.

What To Look For

You're looking for saddleback caterpillars and the trees or plants they are feeding on. Use a stick to search around trees, ornamentals, and landscaping. If you own oak, maple, elm, and citrus trees, search in these trees and around their trunk. Also, search your lawn; they sometimes fall from trees. If you find any saddleback caterpillars, drown them in a bucket of soapy water, and take note of the places where you found them.

Treatment

Once you have confirmed saddleback caterpillar activity, you will begin treatment. Remember to read all product labels, follow the application instructions on them, and wear personal protective equipment to stay safe.

Since most infestations happen outdoors, you will apply treatment there. Our top recommendation is Supreme IT Insecticide. It is labeled for over 70 pests, including saddleback caterpillars, and is known for its quick knockdown and long residual effect. 

Step 1: Measure and Mix Supreme IT in a Sprayer

Start by calculating the square footage of the area you wish to treat by measuring the treatment area's square footage. To find this, measure the treatment areas' length and width in feet, then multiply them together (length x width = square footage).

According to the label, to treat saddleback caterpillars, you must mix 0.125 to 0.25 fl. oz. of Supreme IT with a gallon of water in a pump sprayer to treat 1,000 square feet. 

Fill your sprayer halfway with the required amount of water, and then add the appropriate measured amount of Supreme IT based on your calculations. Fill with the remaining half of the required amount of water, close the sprayer lid, and agitate the sprayer until the solution is well mixed. You are now ready to spray.

Step 2: Apply Supreme IT around your perimeter and yard

Begin by spraying around the perimeter of your structure. Apply 3 feet up and 3 feet out from the foundation's walls. Spray in this manner all around the foundation of your structure, making sure to contact window frames, door frames, cracks, and crevices.

Next, you will spray the whole yard via fan spray to get uniform coverage. Spray your whole lawn, starting from the back to the front. Also, spray ornamentals and landscaping, focusing only on non-edible vegetation areas. Do not spray fruit-bearing trees or flower beds.

Do not allow people or pets to enter the treated areas until the spray dries. 

Prevention

After eliminating the saddleback caterpillars, you need to make sure they don't make a return by implementing some preventative measures. Here are the following measures we suggest taking:

• Start by avoiding planting the species of plants and trees that saddleback caterpillars feed on. Avoid planting apple, basswood, cherry, dogwood, elm, maple, oak, or plum trees if possible.
• It would be best to spray Supreme IT every three months around the perimeter of your structure and broadcast treatment to keep saddleback caterpillars away. This maintenance treatment will help prevent future infestations.

Key Takeaways

What are Saddleback Caterpillars?

• Saddleback caterpillars are distinctive caterpillars known to frequent gardens and deliver a poisonous sting when touched.

How to Get Rid of Saddleback Caterpillars

• Our top recommendation for treating saddleback caterpillars is Supreme IT Insecticide. Apply it around your home perimeter and to your lawn and ornamental plants where saddleback caterpillars may be active or hiding.

Preventing Saddleback Caterpillar

• Preventative applications of Supreme IT around your yard and home perimeter will make it unlikely that the saddleback caterpillar infests again.