Grubs on snow

[Old Dog]

We received a few inches of snow last night and this morning, there are quit a few grubs crawling on top.  I've seen them irregularly before but never in these numbers.  Any idea what they are?


 

 

[Southside]

Based on the evidence I would say they are a chicken version of ice cream with sprinkles. 

[barbender]

I have never seen such a thing.

[newoodguy78]

X2 on never seeing that before. Can only imagine they’re a little sluggish today 

[Don P]

@caveman, this has the makings of a insect whodunit!
What's growing around there as a host?

Did it rain before the snow and the water drove them up, then it turned to snow, or was it just snow? I'm trying to understand why they would have gone up into the freezer  

[YellowHammer]

That is bizarre.  A grub leaving the ground to bore up through freezing snow. A pretty bad decision for the grub.

[WV Sawmiller]

   What is overhead? Any chance they were in some puny wood overhead that got cold and they dropped down instead of burrowing up through the snow?

[beenthere]

What Are the Caterpillars Crawling on Top of the Snow? | Extension

[Old Dog]

 

 

Just crawling around on top of the snow they were - not fast, but steady! We collected several dozen and fed them to the girls.  Mostly sugar maple, hardhack and shagbark hickory around here but they were several hundred feet from the woodline in the mowed lawn and meadow.  I didn't check the woods.  It did not rain overnight but did warm up into the 30's with the snow.  The ground is not frozen.  I can only imagine the emerged from the ground with the warm-up.  Hopefully the overwintering bluebirds got a few of them!
It's supposed to keep snowing overnight - we'll see what we get in the morning!

[KEC]

Thanks for posting info on these things. I've seen them many times and wondered what in the heck they're doing out in cold weather. Those roving flocks of starlings are big on getting them on the lawn; saw them eating them a few days ago. I've picked them up and put them on my bird feeders and they dissappear fast. Old Dog, you're spoiling those hens, they stay in the henhouse and you gather the treats and deliver!   I had some robins foraging on the lawn recently and, I'll bet that they were dining on the grubs.

[SawyerTed]

Thank the Man Upstairs this isn’t a recipe or food thread!!

[terrifictimbersllc]

As soon as this gets figured out it belongs in the ”Did you know” thread.

[Chuck White]

If there are a lot of them, I would suggest you let the chickens out for a "fast food" lunch!

[KEC]

Be careful Chucks' bobcat doesn't get the hens when you let them out !