Is your plant a white coneflower?

Knowing what plant is being eaten is usually key in figuring out what's eating it.

Why wait for an ID before you act?
Start hand-picking, then snipping in half, dropping into soapy water, or stomping.

They might be desirable butterflies.

The only reason I didn't nuke them immediately is because I wanted to make sure that they weren't going to be butterflies. I told my wife they better hope they are or they are getting evicted tomorrow.

The shrub isnt a coneflower for sure. This one grows about 5-6' tall and will get almost as wide. It is a pretty boring looking bush most of the year except in the spring when it blooms and is covered with white flowers. They dont form in clusters or anything like that but just has a nice uniform coat of white blooms. Well, it usually does anyway. The blooms are short lived too. Maybe 2-3 weeks if I remember correctly.

Is there a cocoon they emerge from on this shrub?
They look kind of a little bit like the Eastern, or Western, Tentworm caterpillar.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tentworm Caterpillars

You might post a picture of the whole shrub and one of some of the leaves in the "Name that plant" forum. Also where you live. Then you can search what butterflies/moths might eat that plant.

You might want to post on name-that-plant to determine the shrub's ID. That should make the caterpillar ID easier, by eing able to check the possible butterflies that might host on your plant. Definitely could be undesirable too. Including where you are should help with both ID's.

They definitely look like some type of moth. What are they eating?

It's not a caterpillar at all but the larvae of a sawfly. The exact species of sawfly was easy to identify by knowing what kind of plant it is....mockorange.

So there you go....not a pretty butterfly nor an elegant moth, but a sawfly....an entirely different kind of insect altogether. Get rid of them or they'll eat your plants down to sticks.

Thanks, Rhizo. I knew those leaves looked familiar but couldn't come up with a name.

Sorry, Wilsocn! Hope the next critters you find are "better!"

Rhizo to the rescue. Thanks for the help everyone. Im gonna go Googling and find the best way to deal with these things. It is amazing how much damage they have inflicted in such a short amount of time.

You might try something as simple as a fairly strong spray of water from the hose. An awfully lot of natural enemies help control them....birds, wasps, frogs and toads, and other insects and with just a little effort from you, the larvae won't last long. At the very most, insecticidal soap ( mixed and applied according to label directions) will be all that you would need.

Insecticidal soap has worked well for me with sawfly on various pine trees.

tj