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What is that?
I found this cocoon like thing in my backyard. I have no idea what it is. The botton part wiggles when you touch it. Any ideas. Thanks,
Gloria Rogish
Hi Gloria,
This is a Sphinx Moth Pupa. The “handle” is actually the tube that houses the proboscus, or tubelike mouthparts.
UAE caterpillar
I have lived in the United Arab Emirates for 12 years and yesterday, I saw a caterpillar that I had never seen before. There were several off them spaced out on in the desert’s sandy/gravelly plain about 45 kms south of Dubai. Recently, we had heavy rains (unusual) and the desert turned into a green carpet of plants. I think it’s this abundance of foliage that has prompted the appearance of these caterpillars. The caterpillar has beautiful markings and was about 2″ long. I saw a photo of a similar caterpillar seen in the Ubehebe Crater in Death Valley, California. Possibly the same family? Best regards
David Lees
Hi David,
This is some species of Sphinx Moth Caterpillar in the family Sphingidae. Furthermore, we believed it to be in the genus Hyles, possibly Hyles euphorbiae, the Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth. The caterpillar is quite variable in color, and information can be found on Bill Oehlke’s great site. This species was introduced to the U.S. in 1965 as a biological control agent of the Leafy Spurge, a plant introduced from Europe. The original range of the moth is “from south and central Europe to central Asia.” We continued our research which led us to Hyles livornica on the Sphingidae of the Eastern Palaearctic Website. It looks like a perfect match.
caterpillar?
Hello Bugman,
Found this caterpillar on a walk in the southern pacific Costa Rica. Any idea of what butterfly/moth it turns into? Or maybe it’s just a many legged insect?
Dean Fujioka
Hi Dean,
This is a Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillar, Pseudosphinx tetrio. There are numerous images online.
Caterpillar Identification
Dear Sir,
Can you identify the caterpillar in the attached photo ? The picture was taken in the Florida Everglades in the middle of January.As you can see,it is quite large.I would be grateful if you can help. Yours Sincerely,
steve Parrack.
Hi Steve,
This is a Ficus Sphinx Caterpillar. The caterpillar comes in several different color morphs, and this is one.
Dear Mr Bugman,
I live in Cyprus (south west area) yesterday whilst cleaning the swimming pool, the attached was found dead in the bottom, I have tried to find out information, unsuccessfully, so at this point I am asking for your help in identifying the above, also any possibly explanation as to how it would have ended up where it did, there is no damage on it at all. I look forward to receiving your answer on this matter. Thanks for your assistance.
Janet Hughes
Hi Janet,
This appears to be an Oleander Hawk Moth Caterpillar, Deilephila nerii or Daphnis nerii. If you have an oleander shrub nearby, the caterpillar probably left the shrub to pupate. Pupation occurs occurs underground. Many caterpillars change color just before pupation, which would explain the pink color.
Hello -
This little (?) critter was found on our doorstep and I was hoping you could give us some information on it. My grandson is studying insects in school and this would be a great addition. Thanking you in advance for your assistance.
Cz DiRosario
Hi Cz,
This is a Ficus Sphinx Caterpillar, Pachylia ficus. There are several color variations for the caterpillar, and this is the most striking. While it is admirable that you are assisting your grandson on his project, we hope you will not give him all the answers and allow him to participate in the research process. This would of course depend upon the extent to which he accesses the internet.
Caterpillar ID
Hello,
I have been trying to ID This cattapiller, I photographed in the summer down near the river bottoms, West TN. Thank you
Kathleen Chute
Hi Kathleen,
This is some species of Sphinx Moth in the family Sphingidae. We will try to get a positive ID.
Thank you very Much, I too felt it was of the sphinx moth class but there is such a big difference in pattern. Thanks a Bunch for any and all help.
Kathleen Chute
Hi again Kathleen,
After some research, we now believe this is a Great Ash Sphinx Caterpillar, Sphinx chersis. It seems to be an atypical color pattern. Both Bill Oehlke’s wonderful website and BugGuide have a photo taken by Tony Thomas in 1993 that looks very similar to your caterpillar, but it is a lateral view. We will consult with Bill Oehlke to see if he agrees with our assessment.
Daniel,
I am leaning more toward Agrius cingulata due to black markings on head, but I cannot tell for sure as there is nothing for size comparison, possible food plant. I would need a lateral view. Sorry. It might be chersis??
Bill Oehlke
hornworm almost-pupa
Hi Bugman,
For all the pics I’ve sent you, nothng had ever been good/interesting enough (to you!) for inclusion. This time, we have something you don’t have yet. My 7yo and I were digging out our tomato plants yesterday, when he saw this in the dirt. It is a hornworm in the process of becoming a pupa, as far as I can tell. You can actually see his horn there at the bottom of the pic. His legs were still there too, and he squirmed a bit, but is clearly shorter and more, uh, pupa-shaped than the big fat guys we saw into December. His body markings were gone. We gently reburied him–we’re not planting tomatos there next year–but I don’t know if we did him in just by digging him up. This is from Westchester, CA.
Audrey and Tony
Hi Audrey and Tony,
You have tapped into our guilt. First, we heartily apologize for not ever posting your submissions. There are many possible reasons. Sheer volume is high on the list. If letters have no subject line, then we tend to just ignore them except on very slow days. Often people send letters and forget to attach images and we don’t have time to request that they resend. Who knows? At any rate, we are happy to get your latest sumbission. Reburying the Hornworm probably did not interfere with the metamorphosis. The next step is that the larval skin will split and the pupa will wriggle out.
Hello!
I love this site! I’ve already emailed the link to several friends. Here are a couple of pics I took at my home. I think I’ve narrowed these little critters down to a ‘White Lined Sphinx Caterpillar’. I understand that pillars go through color changes through their development. Are both of these the same species? Anyway, this little guy was crawling through the mulch under some bushes in late April in south Texas. Did I mention I love this site. I’ve got some more strange bug pics to contribute later. Thanks,
Lance
Hi Lance,
These caterpillars are indeed both White Lined Sphinx Caterpillars.
Hi, what type of caterpillar is this?
Hi, I live in Brooklyn, NY and found this around my front lawn. It was quite hefty – probably 3-4 inches, with a beautiful color. What is it? Thanks,
Mark
(GREAT website, by the way)
Hi Mark,
This is a Sphinx Moth Caterpillar, and we suspect it might be a Great Ash Sphinx or Northern Ash Sphinx, Sphinx chersis. There are several different color variations. Was this really found in January?
Hi, thanks for your quick response. Sorry for misleading you. The photo was probably taken in late spring or early summer, judging by the pictures of full blooming hydrangeas in my yard that I believe were taken at the same time, especially since the leaves in the picture with the caterpillar were from the hydrangea bush. I had it on my computer for a while, I just stumbled on your website and didn’t see it there -though from the similar ones, I guessed it was some sort of Sphinx moth. Anyway, thanks again!
Ed. Note:
August 30, 2009
In making some classification changes to our archives, we decided to follow up on the hydrangea leaf, and now we believe this is the caterpillar of the Hydrangea Sphinx, Darapsa versicolor. Bill Oehlke’s website indicates: “and the ‘horn’ on the tail also turns downward as pupation draws near.“ This individual appears to have a downward turned horn.
Caterpillar: Pseudosphinx tetrio
Hi Daniel and Lisa Anne,
This Pseudosphinx tetrio is one more critter from Nevis, Leeward Islands, West Indies, in May of 2006. They were only half-grown, and they were eating the leaves of Yellow Allamanda (Allamanda cathartica) bushes, up at 1,000 feet. I know you already have several images of this species, but I couldn’t resist trying to get a good shot of one; they are so lovely. This picture shows very well the difference between a caterpillar’s true legs and false legs. And by accident the shot includes a lovely, slightly out-of-focus piece of caterpillar poop! (By the way, I have found that if you put a piece of caterpillar poop into a dish of water, the poop comes apart into rather pretty, flat, flower-shaped layers of green cellulose, which look like confetti!) These caterpillars eat Plumeria, Allamanda, and other poisonous plants, so although they are not poisonous for humans to handle, I am sure that to a bird looking for a snack, these caterpillars are, at the very least, really, really horrible-tasting… All good wishes to you both, and thanks for a really great site,
Susan J. Hewitt
Hi again Susan,
Thank you so much for sending in your textbook quality image and first hand account of the Tetrio Sphinx Caterpillar. Occasionally we get a letter from southern Florida regarding this tropical species.
What am I?
This lovely critter was found on our bushes we were trimming in Rowlett TX. What is it? Any idea? Thanks for your info.
Suzanne
Hi Suzanne,
We believe this is a Rustic Sphinx Caterpillar, Manduca rustica.
