“Lep” as in “Lepidoptera,” the “order” of insects that contains butterflies and moths. Butterflies and moths — including skippers — are “distinguished from all other insects by their two pairs of scale-covered wings,”
http://eol.org/pages/747/overview
Leps “are renowned for their sense of smell. The females of most species release complex, species-specific chemical compounds (pheromones), which can be detected by males from great distances. The males locate the females by following their scent plumes, often producing their own pheromones, which are used at close range during courtship. Some moths also have a well-developed sense of hearing, which has evolved as a method to detect the sonar of bats, which are important predators of moths. One group of moths, the tiger moths (Erebidae: Arctiinae) actually produce sound to interfere with the signals of bats or to advertise chemical protection gained from plant compounds,”
http://eol.org/pages/747/overview
“For most Lepidoptera species, the vast majority of the life cycle is spent in the larval stage. … Many species are very host-specific; others feed on a wide variety of plant species. … Most adult Lepidoptera live for only 1 or 2 weeks, and have a fairly specific flight period. Most adults feed on nectar, but many have atrophied mouthparts and do not feed at all, living on the fat reserves built up in the larval stage. Many species, particularly butterflies, are known to ‘puddle’ at damp places, presumably to obtain dissolved minerals,”
http://eol.org/pages/747/overview
“The Lepidoptera constitute one of the four largest groups of insects, in terms of their diversity. About 180 000 species have been described (Biodiversity Institute of Ontario 2006), but many more remain undiscovered. The total number of species is probably between 300 000 and 500 000 (Scoble 1995; Kristensen et al. 2007). Most of the butterfly species have been described, but some groups of moths, particularly the micromoths, remain poorly known. The earliest Lepidoptera fossils are about 190 million years old (Grimaldi and Engel 2005), but most evolutionary radiation in the group occurred in conjunction with that of the flowering plants, in the Cretaceous Period, 65 to 145 million years ago,”
http://eol.org/pages/747/overview
Two weeks ago I posted a photo of a “Dwarf chenille plant,”
http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2014-02-03
Learning about that plant, I learned that “chenille” (like the yarn or the fabric) is derived from a French word and I asked in that post if anyone knew the English translation of “chenille”. Well here it is, and now — especially with this species — we can see how the plant received its name. “Chenille” is French for caterpillar! And here we have a very fuzzy example.
This is my first ID request of the year at BAMONA and is a “Isabella Tiger Moth” or “Banded Woolybear Moth” caterpillar (“Pyrrharctia isabella”). The dark ends are black and the lighter-colored center is a beautiful, dark orange.
Species page at BAMONA,
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Pyrrharctia-isabella
Confirmed at BAMONA as the caterpillar for “Pyrrharctia isabella” or “Isabella Tiger Moth”;
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sighting_details/958965
Photo taken on the sidewalk just outside our front door with a 60mm macro lens.
1 year ago (“Patterns & textures”):
http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2013-02-18
2 years ago (“This glass is ‘two-halves empty’”):
http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2012-02-18
3 years ago (“A “fun-house”-style twist on things?”):
http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2011-02-18 
![ER selfie [Travel day]](https://media.365project.org/1/9429058_cfhjkrwx05_sq.jpg "ER selfie [Travel day]")
@espyetta They are! I was in a rush to get to campus and this guy was gone by the time I got home, so I don't know if it was something's lunch or whether it found a place to do its thing!