Manduca dilucida male courtesy of Dan Janzen.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Family: Sphingidae, Latreille, 1802 Subfamily: Sphinginae, Latreille, [1802] Tribe: Sphingini, Latreille, 1802 Genus: Manduca Hubner, [1807] ........... Species: dilucida (H. Edwards, 1887)

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DISTRIBUTION:

Manduca dilucida (Wingspan 92(TS)-95-98 mm) flies in
Mexico (specimen type locality);
Belize: Corozol, Orange walk, Cayo;
Guatemala: Peten (TS);
Nicaragua: Masaya, probably Carazo, Granada, Rivas;
Costa Rica: Guanacaste;
and possibly across northern South America to Venezuela.

FLIGHT TIMES:

Manduca dilucida adults have been taken in February and every month from April until October in Costa Rica. There are probably three broods annually.

Terry Stoddard reports a June flight in Guatemala.

Manduca dilucida, Ixpanpajul, 5km S Santa Elena, Peten, Guatemala,
June 5, 2015, 200m, 92mm, courtesy of Terry Stoddard, id by Bill Oehlke.

ECLOSION:

Pupae probably wiggle to surface from subterranean chambers just prior to eclosion.

Manduca dilucida female courtesy of Dan Janzen.

SCENTING AND MATING:

Females call in the males with a pheromone released from a gland at the tip of the abdomen. Adults take nectar from flowers.

EGGS, LARVAE, PUPAE:

Pale green, translucent eggs are deposited individually or in small groups of three to five on both upper and undersides of leaves. The first instar larvae are pale green with black horn.

Larvae have several colour morphs, pass through five instars and feed on Annona reticulata, Annona holosericea and Sapranthus palanga of the Annonaceae family and on Amphilophilum paniculatum, Crescentia alata and Tabebuia ochracea of the Bignoniaceae family and on Cordia alliodora of the Boraginaceae family and on Cornutia grandifolia of the Verbenaceae family.

The larva lies on its back, in typical Manduca fashion, while pupating. The pupa has a flat, short tongue cover. Moths usually eclose after two months of development, but some pupae formed in June do not emerge until the following February.

Larvae are highly subject to disease and to parasitization by Tricyphus respinozai and Tricyphus respinozai of the Ichneumonidae family and by Microplitis espinachi of the Braconidae family and by Belvosia sp. 6 and Drino rhoeo of the Tachinidae family and by Euplectrus walteri of the Eulophidae family.

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