{"id":224463,"date":"2026-04-09T05:58:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:58:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/224463\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T05:58:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T05:58:10","slug":"woman-hospitalized-after-contact-with-fuzzy-central-florida-bug","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/224463\/","title":{"rendered":"Woman hospitalized after contact with fuzzy Central Florida bug"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Brief<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Central Florida residents are being warned to keep their distance from a seasonal swarm of fuzzy intruders.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The tussock caterpillar is currently out in full force across Central Florida.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Touching the caterpillar can cause skin irritations, and for one woman \u2013 it sent her to the hospital.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">MIMS, Fla. &#8211; A local woman is sounding the alarm on how dangerous the fuzzy tussock Caterpillars really are. She was hospitalized after coming into contact with one and says the pain is excruciating.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While severe reactions are rare, doctors say people should still avoid the small bug.<\/p>\n<p>What are tussock caterpillars?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Dig deeper<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The tussock caterpillar is the larval stage of a tussock moth. They are recognizable by their distinct, thick tufts of hair. While they are a common sight in Florida during the spring, they\u2019re currently swarming homes and parks. In Mims, homeowner Nicole Herndon says her house is covered in them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox35orlando.com\/fox-local\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX LOCAL APP;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX LOCAL APP&quot;}\" class=\"link \">CLICK TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX LOCAL APP<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;There\u2019s probably about 12 more that are alive and clinging on my screen right now,&#8221; Herndon said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">By late May, the caterpillars will begin to disappear as they transition into their moth stage, but until then, they remain a significant local nuisance.<\/p>\n<p>Horrible reaction from tussock caterpillar<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">For most people, a brush with a tussock caterpillar results in a mild itch and possibly some welts. For Herndon, it was a medical emergency. After coming into contact with one of the insects, Herndon ended up hospitalized for nearly three days.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;It felt like every single inch of my body was on fire, and all I could just was just scream,&#8221; Herndon said. &#8220;My skin was just itching and burning to the point where I was scratching myself raw.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">She says the reaction intensified in about 20 minutes after she brushed the caterpillar. &#8220;As soon as I touched the little coils on its back, it was over.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Why are tussock caterpillars dangerous?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The danger isn&#8217;t in a bite or from a stinger but in the caterpillar&#8217;s defensive coating. Underneath that &#8220;thick rug of hair&#8221; are tiny spines. When these spines pierce human skin, they cause irritation or allergic reaction, much the same way that fiberglass or poison ivy cause a reaction.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox35orlando.com\/newsletters\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:SIGN-UP FOR FOX 35&#039;S BREAKING NEWS, DAILY NEWS NEWSLETTERS;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;context_link&quot;,&quot;yModuleName&quot;:&quot;content-canvas&quot;,&quot;yLinkText&quot;:&quot;SIGN-UP FOR FOX 35&#039;&quot;}\" class=\"link \">SIGN-UP FOR FOX 35&#8217;S BREAKING NEWS, DAILY NEWS NEWSLETTERS<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While Nicole\u2019s extreme reaction is rare, doctors say the physical structure of the hair is designed to cause a reaction in anything that touches it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Yeah, they\u2019re cool looking, but you might want to stay away from them,&#8221; Herndon warned.<\/p>\n<p>What to do if you touch a tussock caterpillar?<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">What you can do<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">If you or a loved one accidentally makes contact with a tussock caterpillar, the goal is to remove the irritant as quickly as possible without spreading the toxins.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Dr. Dana Mathew, a physician with Health First, says the biggest mistake people make is trying to rub the area.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;The important thing is to get rid of the hairs,&#8221; Dr. Mathew said. &#8220;You do not touch or rub them; you will spread it and make it worse. You use a strong tape such as duct tape and you use that to pull out the hairs.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Steps for Treatment:<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Do Not Rub: Rubbing pushes the poisonous spines deeper into the skin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Tape Method: Place a piece of strong tape (like duct tape or packing tape) over the affected area and pull it off to lift the hairs out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Wash Thoroughly: Once the hairs are removed, wash the area with soap and water.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Monitor: Watch for signs of an allergic reaction or worsening rash.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Emergency: If you ever get the irritant in your eye, seek immediate emergency care.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The Source<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">FOX 35 Reporter Esther Bower saw a post on social media about the caterpillars and reached out for more information. She interviewed the victim via zoom and also went to her home on 4\/8. She also spoke with a local doctor on zoom about the dangers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Brief Central Florida residents are being warned to keep their distance from a seasonal swarm of fuzzy&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":224464,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[96894,147,28,30,29,101458,96723],"class_list":["post-224463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-caterpillar","tag-central-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-nicole-herndon","tag-tussock-moth"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224463","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=224463"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224463\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}