LAND O' LAKES, FL (WFLA/CNN) – It’s summer and for many people that means being on the lookout for dangerous snakes and spiders.
And if that's not bad enough, now you've got to worry about venomous caterpillars too.
One teen found out just one touch can send you to the hospital.
Andrea Pergola had no idea what kind of damage a caterpillar could do until she saw the wound it left on her son's wrist.
Pergola described the moment as eye-opening.
"I mean, I've seen furry caterpillars but never seen this one," she said. "Apparently they are around and they're dangerous."
"The fur itself is poisonous," she said. "It has the poison, but then there are venom glands that each spike is attached to."
Logan Pergola and his family were doing volunteer work over the weekend, landscaping, but didn’t realize the furry insect was crawling on an oak tree nearby.
"He came running towards me and he was like 'something bit me,' " Pergola said. "And he showed me and it was like all welted up and I said, ‘let's go inside and rinse it off.’ "
But it was too late.
The toxins were already in Logan's body.
A rash traveled up his arm and onto his chest.
"It numbed my whole hand, pretty much the whole thing felt like fire," he said.
Luckily, an emergency room was nearby and Logan got help immediately.
The family even brought the bug in a baggie and the doctor knew exactly what it was and what to do.
Logan had this advice for people.
"Wear gloves and long sleeves," he said.
The caterpillar is known as the "asp" or "puss" caterpillar.
It is common in the southeastern part of the country.
Once it develops into a flannel moth, it is no longer venomous.
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