rss Camouflage Moth?
Location: Elmhurst, IL
October 12, 2011 11:40 am
I just saw a bug that looks like a camouflaged moth. I have never seen anything like it. it is about 4 inches long and maybe 5 inches wide. It looked like a big leaf on the ground until we looked closer.
Signature: Michael B.
Pandora Sphinx
Dear Michael,
The Pandora Sphinx is really an amazing looking moth.
Really bug Moth?
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
October 3, 2011 1:50 pm
Stepped outside this afternoon and this guy was sitting on the porch. It looks like a moth to me but is the size of a hummingbird. I’ve seen some strange bugs since moving here and this one is top of the list.
Signature: VG
Fig Sphinx
Dear VG,
Judging by the wear and tear on the wings and the missing scales, this Fig Sphinx is not a young individual. You can see the Sphingidae of the Americas for some wonderful information on the Fig Sphinx. In flight, Sphinx Moths are often mistaken for hummingbirds.
Achemon Sphinx Moth
Location: Cheney Kansas
September 21, 2011 9:03 pm
I decided to raise these five caterpillars that were feeding on my grapevines…So I purchased a cheap aquarium and collected the Cats from the vine.
I then fed them new grapevine leaves each day for about a week…They one by one burrowed underground..about 6 to 8 days later they finaly pupated.
This is the results of my 2 week experiment with these catepillars.
Signature: Chris Harris
Achemon Sphinx Caterpillar
Hi Chris,
We are positively thrilled to post your photos documenting the metamorphosis of the Achemon Sphinx. Your project should inspire our readers to attempt a similar endeavor in order to learn more about the creatures around us.
Pupae of the Achemon Sphinx
Your photos are quite nice, and we especially like the image of the caterpillar of the Achemon Sphinx.
Achemon Sphinx
whazzit?
Location: Virginia
September 9, 2011 7:07 pm
We have not been able to identify this flying insect. It was on our butterfly bush, along with some bumblebees. The season is late summer and we live in Virginia, on the east coast, near the Chesapeake Bay.
The proboscis and the ”furry feet” are most intriguing!
The wings move so quickly that it was difficult to focus. Thank goodness, we don’t know if it is a stinging bug.
Thanks for any information.
Signature: Sallye & Robert
Snowberry Clearwing Moth
Hi Sallye & Robert,
There are three species of diurnal Sphinx Moths in the genus Hemaris that are found in Virginia, and we believe you have photographed the Bumblebee Moth or Snowberry Clearwing Moth, Hemaris diffinis, based on this description from the Sphingidae of the Americas website: “Hemaris diffinis is a very variable species, but almost always the abdomen sports contrasting black and yellow hairs, the ventral surface being quite black. The legs also tend to be quite dark and there is a black mask running across the eye and along the sides of the thorax.”
Death’s Head Sphinx Moth …or not??
Location: Ridgefield, CT
September 6, 2011 3:12 pm
Hi Bugman!
Here’s a photo of the Sphinx Moth that came to my front porch two nights ago. I never trap bugs, but he was so large (4 ins.) and unusual I decided to save him for a few hours til my kids awakened and could see him. We released him at dusk the next day and he flew away in fine fettle.
I ask for an id because I read that the Death’s Head Moth is not native and not found here, but this is clearly that moth, and certainly bears the little skull that I see in pix. Also a little freaky… Help!
Signature: Helen Epley
Pink Spotted Hawkmoth
Good morning Helen,
Many of the Sphinx Moths bear patterns on the thoracic area that can be anthropomorphized as looking like a skull, however, the pattern on the Death’s Head Moth is much more pronounced than it is in this lovely Pink Spotted Hawkmoth, Agrias cingulata, a species that has been reported in much of North America as well as Central and South America. You may read more about its habits on the Sphingidae of the Americas website. BugGuidelists its range as: “resident from southern United States to northern South America; migrates in late summer occasionally to northern states, rarely to British Columbia and southeastern Canada, and very rarely to west coast of Europe also resident in Galapagos Islands and Hawaii, and migrates in southern summer from northern South America to Argentina and Falkland Islands.”
Pink Spotted Hawkmoth
Thank you sooo much! I saw the pink-spotted hawkmoth photos but couldn’t see any sort of skull in those particular photos, so I imagined the most exciting outcome!!
LOVE the site.
Helen Epley
Is this a moth??
Location: Maumelle, Arkansas
August 31, 2011 5:46 pm
This is hanging out on the wall of our covered porch. My boyfriend and I are wondering if it is a moth and if that is a stinger on its tail. It is in the upper nineties right now and we have been getting around a storm a week for the past month. It has been there all day without moving.
Signature: What In the World!
Tersa Sphinx
Dear WITW,
This aerodynamic moth is a Sphinx Moth in the family Sphingidae. The species is Xylophanes tersa, commonly called the Tersa Sphinx and you may verify our identification on the Sphingidae of the Americas website.
Moth ID
Location: London Ohio
August 31, 2011 8:40 am
Any idea what this guy is called? I’ve done some searching but am not getting anywhere. found it on my pepper plants in central ohio.
Signature: MC
Carolina Sphinx
Hi MC,
This is Manduca sexta, the Carolina Sphinx or Six Spotted Hawkmoth, and the caterpillar, called the Tobacco Hornworm, is frequently found feeding on tomato plants.
Look what flew into our kitchen this evening…
Location: Louisville, CO
August 26, 2011 11:32 pm
Hi, Daniel.
We had a visitor this evening. The wing span was about 5”. It settled down long enough for me to take a picture with my camera phone, and then Lisa put it back outside safely.
Our next door neighbor has been gifting us with their overflowing bounty of incredibly delicious tomatoes. Lisa suspects that the caterpillar it came from was one that feeds on tomatoes and that it is a hawk moth of some sort.
Signature: Daniel
Carolina Sphinx
Good Morning Daniel,
Lisa is correct. This is Manduca sexta, and its common name, Carolina Sphinx, is deceptive because it ranges well beyond the Carolinas. To further add to the confusion, the larva of the Carolina Sphinx is commonly called the Tobacco Hornworm, though it is found on tomato plants and other native solanaceous plants like Jimsonweed and Nightshade outside of tobacco country. You can read more about the Carolina Sphinx on the Sphingidae of the Americas website. Another similar looking member of the genus is Manduca quinquemaculata, and its caterpillar is known as the Tomato Hornworm. They are so similar in both appearance and habits to the Tobacco Hornworm that many home gardeners do not distinguish between the two species.
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