Caterpillars are quite large, as with many others in the Citheronia genus, and are prominently green, with long prolegs that sport black 'racing stripes' and red 'horns' along each segment of their body.

They also have an alternating pattern of a black stripe on each segment, that terminates at the spiracle (arthropods).

They start out as clusters of small, 3-5 millimeter eggs laid by a female onto a host plant, which will be talked about later.

After their final molt as a caterpillar, they drop to the ground, dig underneath suitable soil, and pupate in a loose silken cocoon.

[4] However, in the wild they can be found on a wide range of other plants, supporting the idea they are highly polyphagous.

These include members of the family Rosaceae, Ricinus communis, Prunus padus, and even Liquidambar.