Silence of the Lambs caterpillars turn up in Bridgend garden

Ian Williams found the death's-head hawkmoth caterpillar in his garden

It's probably best known to many of us thanks to the classic horror film Silence of the Lambs.

The death's-head hawkmoth caterpillar is also a rare sight in the UK.

So Sharon and Ian Williams were amazed to find the outsize beasts "devouring" their shrubs in south Wales.

Ian put photos of them on social media and got so many responses that he jokes he's now an expert on the caterpillar - and the movie star moth that emerges from it with a skull shape on its back.

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In Silence of the Lambs, the moths are used as a calling card by serial killer Buffalo Bill.

They also feature on the poster for the 1991 multi-Oscar winning film, including best picture and best actor for Welshman Sir Anthony Hopkins for his portrayal of another serial killer, Hannibal Lecter.

'I heard a scream'

The impressive caterpillars have now disappeared from the couple's garden

Which must have all seemed a long way away from Sharon and Ian's back garden in Brynmenyn, Bridgend.

Sharon was the first to spot the insect while tending to the bushes in their garden.

"I was in the kitchen and I heard a scream, my wife was actually cutting this bush in our garden back," said Mr Williams.

"That's when we discovered it, it was lucky it didn't get cut in half," he added.

'Incredibly beautiful'

Scary movie: the moth on the poster of the film that first chilled audiences in the 1990s

"I'd be really, really excited, really pleased if I found one," said Dr Sarah Christofides, of Cardiff University's school of biosciences.

While she said they are not one of the "really rare species", it is still uncommon to come across them in the UK.

"Generally hawkmoths are very big moths - and they're not as common as perhaps some of the smaller ones you get," she said.

"If you look at an adult death's-head hawkmoth you'd see what an incredibly beautiful animal it is."

'I am now the leading authority'

The caterpillar - native mostly to southern Europe and north Africa - grows into the death's-head hawkmoth, with a distinctive skull shaped pattern on its back

Ian said: "It's not something I've ever seen before, I couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"My knowledge of caterpillars and moths would probably fit on the back of a fag packet."

After not knowing what to make of his discovery, he put the pictures on social media, and the response was impressive.

"I've been party to all these replies now, so I am now the leading authority on this moth," he joked.

Mr Williams found three of the same caterpillars "devouring" a bush in his garden

"It's really unusual in the UK, I've never seen one myself unfortunately," added Dr Arthur Morris, research associate at Cardiff University.

"It tends to be Mediterranean, southern European and northern African, but when we have particularly warm and dry summers we tend to get a few over here.

"Hawkmoths tend to produce very large caterpillars, so when you find them it's very certain that it's pretty obvious that you'd got something quite unusual."

After learning which insect has taken up residence in garden, Ian scoured the bushes hoping to find them again.

"As much as I'm looking, I've not seen anything, it's quite disappointing," he said.

"I assume they've disappeared to their next home now."

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