What is this?
Location:  North Dakota
September 20, 2010 7:04 pm
My son and I would like to know what this is. We found it in our garage, it is about 3-4 inches long. We have never seen anything like it. We live in Carrington North Dakota, and we found this in mid september.
Signature:  science project

Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth Caterpillar

Dear science project,
This stunning caterpillar is a Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth Caterpillar, a Eurasian species.  According to Bill Oehlke’s Sphingidae of the Americas website:  “The leafy spurge hawk moth, Hyles euphorbiae (length: 2-3 cm, wingspan: 5-7 cm), was the first classical biological agent released against leafy spurge in the United States, with approval for introduction granted in 1965. Populations of this insect are present in several western states, including Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, Minnesota and Oregon. The moth was also introduced from Europe into Ontario, Canada, and then into Alberta where specimens are occasionally still taken.“

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Death’s Head Hawk Moth
Hi Daniel
Kate has asked me to send you the photos I took of the moth (not great I’m
afraid).  We put the caterpillar  into a box with earth on 17th August and
it immediately burrowed.  It emerged at around 10pm on Saturday 11th
September.  Unfortunately the lighting was so bad it was difficult to take
decent photos (plus I’m not a great photographer).

Death's Head Hawkmoth Pupa

I also have a short film which I uploaded to Youtube.  I can either send you
the film direct or the link to Youtube if you would like it.
Thanks for your help.
Kind regards
Jan

Death's Head Hawkmoth

Hi Jan
Your photo is most interesting to us because most photos of the Death’s Head Hawkmoth show the signature skull pattern on the thorax, but it is rare to have an image of the undersides of the wings.  If our memory serves us correctly, the original photo Kate sent of the caterpillar was from Portugal.

Thanks Daniel.  You’re right about the caterpillar being found in Portugal, which is where we live.  More precisely just north of Loulé in the Algarve.
Kind regards
Jan

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large unusual moth
Location:  mid-Missouri
September 8, 2010 10:18 am
This large moth came fluttering into my flower bed while I was weeding, yesterday. What is its name?
God is a great creator! Amazing camouflage.
Signature:  Dorothy

Pandora Sphinx

Hi Dorothy,
Of all the many species of moths that have evolved to exhibit excellent camouflage, the one species that our readership consistently acknowledges as having a camouflage pattern is Eumorpha pandorus, commonly called the Pandora Sphinx.  We suspect it is because the markings on this species most closely resemble the camouflage pattern of military fatigues.  The naming of insects according to taxonomic protocol is a fascinating process, and the person who discovers and identifies a new species gets the honor, though this has often led to confusion over the years when more than one person has “discovered” and named a species in the days prior to a reliable global communication system.  All living creatures are named with a binomial system that first  identifies a capitalized genus of closely related individuals that have evolved from some ancestral and possibly extinct creature, and then a lower case species name.  According to BugGuide, the genus name Eumorpha means “fair of form” in Greek, and the species name pandorus means “giving all” or “given all” also according to BugGuide.  The common name Pandora Sphinx is derived from the scientific binomial name, though that name has undergone taxonomic changes since this species was first discovered.  In Greek mythology, Pandora was the first woman who was given gifts by all the gods and goddesses, including a box that she was not to open.  Curiosity got the best of her and she opened the box and  unleashed evil into the world.  The common name Sphinx refers to the characteristic pose of the caterpillar that is thought to resemble the Sphinx of mythology, immortalized in the colossal statue in Egypt.  Interestingly, more than any other group of insects, large moths often were given names that reference Greek and Roman mythology.

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Hummingbird Moth
Location:  Central Massachusetts
September 7, 2010 2:38 pm
I had seen your answer to a previous writer about these cool creatures and I wanted to forward a few pictures of them to you. All this time we thought they were possibly baby hummingbirds only to find out they are moths.
But, none the less are are amazing creatures and appear to have no fear. they would buzz around my wife as she was trimming the butterfly bushes in our yard. Enjoy.
Signature:  Brian Dicks

Hummingbird Clearwing Moth

Hi Brian,
We are happy to post your photo of a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth.  It seems we have answered at least two identification requests for this creature every day for the past few weeks, but either the photos were not that good, or the letter was not engaging, or we had too many other letters we wanted to post, but whatever the reason, we have responded directly without posting the letters to our website.  We like that you took the time to identify your Hummingbird Clearwing Moth and that your letter is enthusiastic about nature, and that your image quality is very good, so we are posting your letter and photo of a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth, Hemaris thysbe, which you may read about on Bill Oehlke’s excellent website.

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