I get several varieties too. Last summer I spent several months collecting and killing rose slugs and budworms. Have no idea which are which, I have ones dark green, sage green color and a tomato green. At least the pics I sent Baldo were ID'd as budworms. Had a big problem in CA last year, LA area down south and in the north. Mine definetly ate the buds, I could handle leaf damage, but I started going out twice a day collecting the caterpillars and feeding them to the toads. I put out houses for them and throw the worm down on the ground by their pot and knock on the top to get their attention. My SIL was very amused by this. I found it more satisfying that squishing them:) If I hunt I might be able to come up with a better pic. I don't have any mature trees, mine are all only a couple years old. The neighbors don't have any trees at all yet. So, I think I can definitely rule out the cankerworm. If some of them are hover fly larvae, I can't tell the difference and I'm not going to give them a chance to eat the buds and disappear.

Thank you for the welcome. Yup, this is my first time here "officially" in the butterfly garden. I've lurked lots. Btw, I checked out bluebirdbabe's sawfly lavae, but I don't think they're the same as mine. I'll see if I can get a better picture of my little crawlies.

Just FYI, next time you see a caterpillar, you can usually find what it is by knowing what plant it's on. For example, if you google "beet host plant" you'll see lots of entries for beet armyworm. Once you get an idea, you can look at pics to confirm. Caterpillars usually have a single plant or just a few plants that they can eat.

First of all, the repeat posts and the shouting (all caps) is uncalled for. This is an insect message board, not a 911 emergency! OK, your pictures are just a little blurry, but I think you have some kind of cutworm. If so, it's just a commom garden pest that will turn into a brown moth. Of course, there's no reason you can't keep it to see it go through its metamorphosis. Just put some loose, slightly moist garden soil about 2" deep in a container with a venitlated top. Add whatever plant material your caterpillar is eating and that's it. When he's ready to pupate, he will burrow into the soil, so if a few days go by and you don't see him, dig around carefully in the soil, and you may find a little red-brown pupa. Once he pupates, (and I really don't know if it's a he or a she, but I like to say "he"), it would be a good idea to place him, container and all, in a cool, sheltered spot, like your garage, or porch. Remember: in nature, this little guy would be pupating and perhaps spending the winter underground, and if you keep it indoors, he might turn into a moth too early. Hope this helps!