{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.caterpillar","code":"thing-q81825","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q81825/","name":"caterpillar","alternateNames":["silkworm","wild silkworm","monarch butterfly caterpillar","black swallowtail caterpillar","white-marked Tussock caterpillar","edible caterpillar","cutworm","Eligma narcissus caterpillar","waxworms"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.1","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Physical world and living systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"PHY","domain":["PHY.LIV"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"The larval stage of butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera), a soft-bodied, segmented feeder that grows through moults before pupating.","purpose":"Let an agent handle caterpillars by species, host plant, stage and impact, including silkworms, crop pests and stinging species.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["A larval stage, not a separate animal","Feeds heavily and grows through moults","Many are specialist herbivores","Some have urticating hairs that cause rashes"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"identification","name":"Identification","description":"Which caterpillar.","layers":[{"id":"species","name":"Species","description":"Name and adult.","findings":[{"id":"species-finding","name":"Species","description":"Species and adult form.","questions":[{"text":"Which species is this caterpillar, and what does the adult look like?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"How was it identified?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"stage","name":"Stage","description":"Instar.","findings":[{"id":"stage-finding","name":"Instar","description":"Development stage.","questions":[{"text":"Which instar is it?","kind":"measurement"},{"text":"When will it pupate?","kind":"measurement"}]}]}]},{"id":"ecology","name":"Ecology","description":"Host plants and role.","layers":[{"id":"host","name":"Host plants","description":"What it eats.","findings":[{"id":"host-finding","name":"Host plants","description":"Host plants.","questions":[{"text":"Which plants does it feed on?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is it a specialist or generalist?","kind":"definition"}]}]},{"id":"role","name":"Role","description":"Pest, pollinator stage, prey.","findings":[{"id":"role-finding","name":"Role","description":"Ecological role.","questions":[{"text":"Is it a pest here?","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"Is the species protected?","kind":"boundary"}]}]}]},{"id":"safety","name":"Safety","description":"Stinging hairs.","layers":[{"id":"hazard","name":"Hazard","description":"Urticating hairs and spines.","findings":[{"id":"hazard-finding","name":"Hazard","description":"Whether it stings.","questions":[{"text":"Does this species have urticating hairs or spines?","kind":"boundary"},{"text":"Are nests a public health issue?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"first-aid","name":"First aid","description":"After contact.","findings":[{"id":"first-aid-finding","name":"First aid","description":"What to do after contact.","questions":[{"text":"What should someone do after touching it?","kind":"action"},{"text":"When is medical help needed?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"use-and-control","name":"Use and control","description":"Silk, food, pest control.","layers":[{"id":"use","name":"Use","description":"Silk and food.","findings":[{"id":"use-finding","name":"Use","description":"Human uses.","questions":[{"text":"Is it farmed for silk or food?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which rules apply?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"control","name":"Control","description":"Integrated pest management.","findings":[{"id":"control-finding","name":"Control","description":"Control methods.","questions":[{"text":"Which control methods are appropriate?","kind":"action"},{"text":"How can non-target species be protected?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Identify caterpillars and report whether a species is protected, a pest or has urticating hairs.","Report pest outbreaks to plant health authorities."],"mustNot":["Encourage children to handle caterpillars with urticating hairs.","Apply pesticides that harm non-target species beyond the label.","Collect or trade protected species."],"requiresHuman":["Large-scale control of caterpillar outbreaks in forests or crops."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Caterpillars become butterflies and moths, many of them declining.","Some cause serious reactions, especially in children."],"affectedParties":["Children and the public","Foresters and farmers","Butterfly and moth populations"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody owns wild caterpillars; plant health authorities regulate pests.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["Biodiversity and species occurrence databases"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q15630878","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"butterfly or moth","type":"related","note":"Lepidoptera"},{"target":"insect","type":"related","note":"larval insect"},{"target":"plant","type":"related","note":"host plants"},{"target":"silk","type":"related","note":"silkworms"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.caterpillar","Wikidata: Q81825 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q81825)","scientific name: binomial of the species species identity"]},"properties":{"applicability":"required","items":["length: 1-150 mm","number of instars: 4-7 moults - typical"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"required","items":["Segmented body with true legs and prolegs","Colour and hair patterns suggest species","Sawfly larvae look similar but have more prolegs","A long segmented larva with a head, three pairs of true legs and fleshy prolegs; many are camouflaged, brightly warning-coloured or hairy."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["identify it, to species","rear it, as with silkworms","control it, where it damages crops","avoid touching stinging species"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Skin and eye reactions from urticating hairs","Crop and forest damage","Allergic reactions"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Plant health rules on regulated pests","Pesticide rules","Novel food rules for edible insects"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Caterpillars are organisms; people farm some for silk and food, protect others and control pests.","silkworms and wild silkworms","crop pests such as cutworms","stinging and hairy caterpillars such as tussock moths","edible caterpillars"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q81825: caterpillar","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q81825","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Caterpillar","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caterpillar","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should caterpillars be linked to their adult species entries?","How should pest status be recorded by region?","How should agents advise on stinging species safely?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q81825/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q81825/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-11T05:15:23Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"filled","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-06T19:52:02+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass"},"score":1.0}}