While on holiday in north-west France in March 20101 came across the line of caterpillars shown in the photograph below. They were on the seaf ront road in Carnac, heading towards the sea, maintaining close head-to-tail contact. The only vegetation between them and the sea was some raised flower beds. Can anybody identify these caterpillars and explain their behaviour? These are unmistakably the caterpillars of the pine processionary moth, Thaumetopoeapityocampa. In France this species was only found south of the Loire valley until quite recently, but it is extending its range northwards as the photo confirms.
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