Nature on our doorsteps: Hairy Mollies …

Rosaleen Dwyer is the County Heritage Officer at South Dublin County Council – every week she gives us an insight into nature on our doorsteps and the beautiful biodiversity of its plants and wildlife.

The term ‘Hairy Molly’ has often been used in Ireland to describe any hairy or fuzzy-looking caterpillar.

This term is said to have originated from the Irish language where ‘mala’ or ‘malaí’ (plural) is the Irish word for an eyebrow.

The term is most often used for the caterpillars of moths like the Fox moth, the Garden Tiger, or the Ruby Tiger.

At this time of the year ‘hairy eyebrow’ caterpillars can often be seen trundling busily across paths or roads as they go in search of a place to hibernate for winter. These hairy caterpillars are also referred to as ‘Woolly Bears’.

Fox Moth caterpillars have short reddish-brown hairs along their back and longer grey-brown hairs long their sides.

This ‘Hairy Molly’ caterpillar was spotted scurrying across a path in Kiltipper Park in early October

When they are disturbed, they curl into a tight circle until they feel safe enough to proceed on their way.

Caterpillars are an important food for birds. Most birds, however, tend to avoid hairy caterpillars because the long hairs makes them hard to eat.

This is why these caterpillars are not too worried about being seen during the day as they move around.

While these caterpillars are not poisonous for us, some people find that the long hairs can irritate their skin if they pick the caterpillars up.

The adult Fox Moth is a large insect, and it gets its name from the reddish-brown colour of the male.

Their preferred habitat is open grassland, woodland, and moorland where the adults can be found between May and July.

The males and females fly mostly at night when mating occurs, but the male can also be seen during the day. During the summer, the hairy caterpillars eat grasses, Bramble, Clover, Heather, and Bilberry.

As winter approaches, they search for a safe place amongst fallen leaves and grass tussocks where they hibernate overwinter.

This is when we are most likely to see them as they scuttle about in the open.

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