Subject: Dark Hornworm
Location: Lake Ann Michigan
September 9, 2015 1:16 pm
Found both the normal green hornworm and the almost black one on 8/17/14 just 3 miles south of the Village of Lake Ann, Michigan. zip code 49643.
The darker one was much more aggresive, vibrated and emitted an odd noise when handled even slightly.
Found a total of 4 that year.
Signature: Bryan Black
Dear Bryan,
Though they were both probably feeding on Tomato Plants, your two Hornworms represent different species in the same genus. The dark Hornworm is a dark morph of a Tomato Hornworm, Manduca quinquemaculatus, and the green Hornworm is a Tobacco Hornworm, Manduca sexta. It is very curious that the Tomato Hornworm was the more aggressive of the two.
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination
Just yesterday I found this poor guy in my garden. A victim of the braconid wasp.