Mother warns parents after venomous caterpillar sends teen to ER

LAND O' LAKES, Fl. (WSET) -- It's summer, so that means many people are on the lookout for creepy creatures like snakes, spiders, and mosquitoes - but now one mother is telling parents to look out for something else, venomous caterpillars.

One touch sent a Florida teenager to the hospital.

"I mean, I've seen furry caterpillars but never seen this one," Andrea Pergola, the boy's mother, told WFLA. "Apparently they are around, and they're dangerous."

She said the caterpillar's fur has poison and there are also venom glands.

Pergola said she and her son, Logan, were doing some landscaping volunteer work over the weekend when the caterpillar was lurking in an oak tree.

"He came running towards me and he was like something bit me," she said. "And he showed me and it was like all welted up and I said, let's go inside and rinse it off."

But, the toxins were already in his body and an angry rash started traveling up his arm and onto his chest.

Luckily, they were near an ER and he was able to get immediate help.

The family brought the bug with them to the doctor who said he knew exactly what it was and what to do.

Experts said the larva is known as the 'asp' or 'puss' caterpillar and it's common in the southeastern United States, including Virginia.

Once it develops into a Flannel Moth, it's no longer venomous.