What am I?
Hi! Maybe you can help me. I found this caterpillar roaming around my patio this morning. I’ve tried looking online for something that looks like him, and the only thing I can find is the Abbot’s Sphinx Caterpillar, Sphecodina abbotti. I didn’t find a picture that looked like this one, but the description sure does match. I live in California, and have a grape vine in our back yard. Don’t know if that’s where the caterpillar was heading, but it sure was on the move. I also have fruit trees in my yard. Should I be worried??? Thanks so much for any information you can provide!
-Jenny
Hi Jenny,
We really wanted to get an answer for you to find out if you are related to our former student, the wonderful photographer Anita. We believe this is a Banded Sphinx Caterpillar, Eumorpha fasciatus. It is a highly variable caterpillar. Bill Oehlke’s fabulous page does not have a color match, but BugGuide has a very similar looking specimen. Grape is a host food plant.
Could it be an Eumorpha fasciatus caterpillar?
Interestng photo of an unusual colour pattern (in prepupal stage).
Nicest wishes from Berlin,
Bostjan