Beware of these cute little SC caterpillars this spring. They pack a mean sting.

Oh they’re just so cute — soft and fluffy with long hair, and they’re caterpillars.

Yet, while they do look like something you want to nuzzle, you need to just leave them alone. Puss moth caterpillars sting.

Painful stings.

Some people call them toxic toupees. They grow to be about an inch long and lie on leaves looking like a mass of hair. The thing is their hair often hides sharp spines that release venom. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says most caterpillar stings in the South are caused by puss caterpillars and can cause days and even weeks of pain.

Commonly found on trees in residential areas, parks, and near wooded spots, particularly in the coastal plain, they are everywhere throughout SC. They feed on the leaves of oak, elm, hackberry, maple, and sycamore and are most active in late summer and fall. They come down from trees to make their cocoons.

And when they do, that’s when the fun, er problems, begin.

They fall out of trees or get under leaves and then people get stung.

NPR reported Eric Day, the manager of Virginia Tech’s Insect ID Lab, was stung when mowing his lawn and accidentally brushed against a tree.

He said he felt a burning sensation and got a blister about an inch long.

“The burning sensation went away in a day or so, but that blister and then subsequent kind of irritated area was visible for several weeks,” he told NPR.

The level of pain caused by the caterpillar’s sting varies from person to person, and people who routinely get extreme reactions to stings can have anaphylaxis or need medical attention,” Molly Keck of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service told NPR.

What to do if you are stung

Here’s what to do if you get stung, according to the National Capital Poison Center. Use tape to remove the hairs and then gently wash the area with soap and water.

• Apply an ice pack to prevent swelling and reduce pain.
• Use hydrocortisone cream or a baking soda and water paste for relief from itching.
• If the pain worsens, go to a doctor.
• Caterpillars are the immature stages of butterflies and moths.
• Scientists said the best way to avoid stings is to be aware they exist and leave them alone.
• Admire from afar and then walk away.