Tomato Hornworm With Parasites

You have found Nature in action, controlling a pest! The green worm is a tomato hornworm, the larvae of one of the sphinx moths. Tomato hornworms can do significant damage to tomato plants, so should be hand picked for fastest removal. However, when you find one with these white bodies on them, take it off of your tomatoes but leave it nearby in a patch of weeds. Those are the eggs of a parasitizing wasp called a Braconid Wasp – they will soon kill the hornworm and then go on to develop into more Braconid Wasps which will keep other hornworms in check. So this is an example of how Mother Nature prevents one pest from getting out of hand! Save any hornworm with those white eggs, but either smash others or put them on your bird feeder and let the crows find them.