{"id":211251,"date":"2026-03-30T03:42:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T03:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/211251\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T03:42:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T03:42:09","slug":"florida-tussock-moth-caterpillars-safety-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/211251\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Tussock Moth Caterpillars: Safety Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"

CENTRAL FLORIDA \u2014 As the native tussock moth caterpillars emerge in full force in Central Florida this season, parents and children are reminded to exercise caution due to their skin-irritating fuzzy hairs. <\/p>\n

These harmless but potentially bothersome creatures are on a mission to create their cotton ball-like cocoons and while they don\u2019t sting, it\u2019s best to keep a safe distance. <\/p>\n

Learn how to handle encounters with these fuzzy insects and what to do if skin irritation occurs.<\/p>\n

Tell the kids not to touch them or play with them if you see them at the playgroundHairs can get stuck in the skin causing irritationRemove visible hairs with tapeWash the area with soap and water and apply ice or baking soda\/water paste to soothe the skinIf the reaction is severe, consult a doctor<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here<\/a> to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.<\/p>\n

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TOP STORIES FROM WFTV CHANNEL 9<\/p>\n

\u00a92026 Cox Media Group<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CENTRAL FLORIDA \u2014 As the native tussock moth caterpillars emerge in full force in Central Florida this season,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":211252,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[147,145,28,30,29,96732,96731,139,96725,96723,144,146],"class_list":["post-211251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-central-florida","tag-channel-9","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-fuzzy-caterpillars","tag-fuzzy-hairs","tag-orlando","tag-skin-irritation","tag-tussock-moth","tag-wftv","tag-wftv-channel-9"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=211251"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211251\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/211252"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=211251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=211251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=211251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}