The One That Got Away

Carolina wrens will nest in just about anything here, including the pocket of a raincoat left to dry. (Been there, done that.) They love to nest in wreaths on our door and hanging baskets, even the newspaper box. This sad little impatiens  used to be beautiful. You can see the empty nest in the middle. You can also see the defoliation. This was not done by the birds. Wrens, like all birds, bring  food to their babies. This defoliation is the result of one live caterpillar that did not get eaten and instead ate up the impatiens plant.

Once it had eaten most of the leaves, its cover would have been very limited. I wonder if it was finally discovered and eaten before the babies fledged.