Happy Halloween everyone! If you’re still undecided as to what to be for your favorite spooky holiday, then look no further for inspiration! I’ve compiled a list of creepy crawlers from around the globe that are dressed as some of your favorite Halloween characters. If they can make Jack-o-lanterns scary, freak out their neighbors wearing “Jason’s masks”, and terrify children with their Steven King’s “It” makeups… then so can you!
So take a cue from these 7 decked out bugs that will give you the best Halloween costume ideas!
Jack-o-lantern Caterpillar
photo: SoonChye
photo: Flickr user John Horstman
photo: Flickr user John Horstman
photo: Flickr user Siew Chuan Cheah
To start things off, I’d figured I’d go with one of the most classic Halloween costumes out there – the Jack-O-Lantern! This Common Awl caterpillar (Hasora badra) sports the look alarmingly well with its bright red/orange face and black “carved out” features. It will eventually transform into a dark brown butterfly with a wingspan of 50 to 55mm.
Until that time, it will remain in full trick-or-treating garb, rockin’ the freaky pumpkin look.
‘Jack Skellington’ Jumping Spider
photo: Flickr user Debbie Hall
Habitat: Costa Rica
Status: Not Evaluated
My favorite Halloween character of all time – Jack Skellington!! Hence, this spider is up there as one of the coolest jumpers I’ve seen. The photographer, Debbie Hall, who spotted this amazing creature in the jungles of Costa Rica wasn’t entirely sure of the species, though we do know it is in the family Salticidae. Unfortunately, that doesn’t exactly narrow things down as Salticidae is the largest family of spiders, consisting of over 5,000 species.
So, for now, we’ll just call it the Jack Skellington Jumper. If you do know what species this is, please let me know in the comments!
Pennywise Spider
photo: Igor Ryabov
Habitat: Ukraine
Status: Not Listed
This might be the most freaky Halloween costume idea we have on this list. This spider is taking on the form of the terrifying killer clown from Stephen King’s hit 1990’s film It.
A member of the crab spider in the family Thomisidae, this horrifying arachnid was spotted by Ukrainian photographer Igor Ryabov, 44, near his house in a spot where he often heads to practice his macro photography. As that place isn’t a 90’s film set, this crab spider is all too real!
Igor said: “When I first came across the spider I thought it was just going to be my usual macro shot and there didn’t seem anything particularly unusual about the spider.
“I didn’t notice its strange features.
“I was even more stunned to see how it looked on my computer screen because it was almost as if somebody had drawn the features on with a pen.”
This might be the creepiest creepy-crawley I’ve ever seen.
Tim Burton’s Caterpillar Creation
photo: Igor Siwanowicz
photo: Igor Siwanowicz
Habitat: Russian Far East, the Korean Peninsula and China
Status: No Conservation Concerns
The caterpillar of the Sino-Korean Owl Moth (Brahmaea certhia) looks like something straight out of a Tim Burton art exhibit. Tell me you can’t see this thing in some dark, twisted version of Alice in Wonderland (playing the smoking caterpillar of course)?
Even after it transforms into its adult moth version it is still pretty intimidating. The wingspan on this moth can reach 4.7 in in length!
photo: www.vlindertjes.eu
‘Jason’s Mask’ Harvestman
photo: Flickr user Art
photo: Flickr user Art
Habitat: Ecuador
Status: Not Evaluated
Halloween must be all the rage in the jungles of South America because here’s another fantastically freaky arachnid! This is a species of Harvestman that has yet to be identified. I have taken the liberty of nicknaming it the Jason’s Mask Harvestman due to its uncanny likeness to the quintessential killer’s mask:
Oogie Boogie Moth
photo: Flickr user zxgirl
photo: Flickr user magnunc
photo: Flickr user John B.
Habitat: Ontario, Quebec and Maine to Florida, west to Texas, north to Kansas and Illinois
Status: No Conservation Concerns
The name of this tiny moth (wingspan is 12-15 mm) is completely and utterly misleading. It’s called the Elegant Grass-veneer Moth (Microcrambus elegans) and I have no idea why. I mean, does looking EXACTLY like the Oogie Boogie from The Nightmare Before Christmas make you look elegant in any way shape or form? I think not.
So maybe the scientists who named this little species had never seen the Tim Burton film before… but personally, I think they really missed out on a great naming opportunity with this one. Microcrambus oogie boogie sounds more appropriate to me! What do you think?
Death’s Head Hawkmoth
photo: Igor Siwanowicz, via photo.net
photo: Flickr user Ryan Brookes
photo: commons.wikimedia.org
Habitat: throughout the Middle East & Mediterranean, as far north as southern Great Britain
Status: No Conservation Concerns
Though the Death’s-head Hawkmoth is completely harmless, it has earned quite the reputation for itself. There are actually 3 species, but the most well known and pictured here is Acherontia atropos. The vaguely skull-shaped pattern on its thorax has struck fear into the hearts of many and there are various superstitions surrounding the moth. You really only have to worry about the Death’s-head Hawkmoth if you’re a honey bee, however. At night the Death’s-head will raid the hives of Western honey bees, being attacked by guard bees at the entrance. It just so happens that it has a thick skin and resistance to bee venom so it is able to wander inside unharmed. Once deep within the hive no one bothers the moth because it actually mimics the scent of the bees! Very sneaky, eh?
You might also remember the Death’s-head Hawkmoth from the popular horror movie The Silence of the Lambs (a personal favorite of mine) so that’s why I included it in this list of Halloween costume ideas. The moth was used as the calling card of the serial killer, Buffalo Bill. It’s also featured on the promotional posters for the movie.
Because I didn’t want to end things on a completely terrifying note, you can be comforted by the Death’s-head Hawkmoth’s defense strategy. To appear frightening (as if its appearance wasn’t enough), the moth will emit a loud squeaking noise by expelling air through its proboscis. While this is supposed to be scary, it’s actually rather cute, in my opinion!
And that concludes the list of creepy crawlers that are permanently in the Halloween Spirit by wearing their best Halloween costumes! I hope you’re now inspired with these Halloween costume ideas to go out and do some trick-or-treating tonight! Have fun everyone!
