Beautiful moth on front porch
July 7, 2010
I photographed this moth on our front porch. After a few days I noticed it hadn’t moved so I touched it and it spread it’s wings more and these pink eyes appeared, after several more days it laid eggs, can I hatch them and what kind of food do they need?
Gary
North west Washington state

One Eyed Sphinx

Hi Gary,
Your moth, Smerinthus cerisyi, is one of the Sphinx Moths or Hawkmoths in the family Sphingidae and there is an excellent profile of the species on Bill Oehlke’s excellent website.  It is commonly called the One Eyed Sphinx, a name that doesn’t make much sense considering the bilateral symmetry of its anatomy.  The one eye is a comparison of the characteristics of the eyespots of other species like the Blinded Sphinx, Paonias excaecata, also profiled on the Oehlke site, or the Twin Spotted Sphinx, Smirinthus jamaicensis, also profiled on the Oehlke site.  The One Eyed Sphinx is also known as Cerisy’s Sphinx.  Your two photos together are an excellent example of the protective coloration of the One Eyed Sphinx.  While resting, the eyespots or ocelli are hidden, but if the moth is disturbed by a predator, like the pecking of a bird, the moth reveals its eyespots and the bird may be startled into thinking that the prey might really be a larger predator.  Many butterflies and moths have such ocelli, and there are nice examples posted to BugGuide.  According to Bill Oehlke’s website, the caterpillars will feed on the leaves of willow and poplar.  According to BugGuide, the caterpillars will feed on the leaves of pear and plum as well as willow and poplar.

One Eyed Sphinx (showing two ocelli)

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This moth was on my screen, almost looked like carved wood. Shades of brown, approx. 2-3 inches wide.
July 6, 2010
The moth stayed on the screen for 3 days before leaving. It was the end of June. very interesting wing patterns, thick body and 4 wings.
artqueen
Duxbury, Ma. (southern Ma.)

Small Eyed Sphinx

Dear artqueen,
Your moth is one of the Sphinx Moths or Hawkmoths in the family Sphingidae.  It is Paonias myops, commonly called the Small Eyed Sphinx.  You can read more about this species on Bill Oehlke’s excellent website.  According to Oehlke:  “Wild cherry species are the favorites as larval foodplants, but eggs will also be deposited on birches and other forest trees.“

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Found a huge, brown moth on my daughter’s bike tire, what is it?
July 3, 2010
At an invitation to “come outside and see something really cool” I followed my 6 year old out to her bike. I was surprised to find a moth about 3 inches long resting on her tire. It has a beautiful face with huge, dark eyes. I searched the web and thought it might be a Sphinx Moth of some sort, you can hopefully tell me better.
Shalaine
Tamworth, Ontario, Canada

Northern Ash Sphinx

Hi Shalaine,
YOur moth is a Northern Ash Sphinx, Sphinx chersis, and Bill Oehlke’s excellent website has some great information on the species.

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found in my garden
June 29, 2010
this was found in my garden in manchester yesterdaybut i dont think its native to britain could you help me with identification?
Kevin loch
manchester

Elephant Hawkmoth

Hi Kevin,
There are two species of Elephant Hawkmoths in the genus Deilephila that are native to the UK.  We believe your individual may be Deilephila elpenor, which is profiled on the UK Moths website.  The caterpillars burrow underground to pupate.  Adults emerge and must dig to the surface before their wings harden and dry.  Your individual is newly metamorphosed and its wings have not yet expanded and hardened for flight.

Thanks for the prompt reply, after doing a little more research and watching it for a little while longer i discovered that it was an elephant hawk moth once its wings had dried and i now feel quite priviledged to have watch it take its first flight!

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