Grand County

Sphingidae Larvae

Ceratomia undulosa, Moab, Grand County, Utah, November 12, 2007,
crawling on the sand in a dry wash, courtesy of Arthur Morris, id by James Tuttle.

This page is inspired by and dedicated to Arthur Morris who sent me the image of the Ceratomia undulosa larva depicted at the top of the page.

Arthur writes, "Can you help me with the identification of this hornworm? It was found crawling on the sand in a dry wash near Moab, Utah."

I wrote back indicating that I thought the larvae was most likely Sphinx chersis, but submitted the image to Jim Tuttle who writes, "Tough angle and prepupal, but I would say that the lateral stripes are too broad to be chersis; I would say undulosa."

For care of "found larvae/caterpillars" visit Manduca sexta larva, Travis County, central Texas, August 21, 2008, Trina Woodall.

Twenty-five Sphingidae species are listed in the USGS for Utah. Not all of the species are reported by USGS (nine species reporteed by USGS as on November 2007: Five-spotted hawkmoth (Manduca quinquemaculata), Big poplar sphinx (Pachysphinx occidentalis), One-eyed sphinx (Smerinthus cerisyi), Great ash sphinx (Sphinx chersis), Wild cherry sphinx (Sphinx drupiferarum), Elegant sphinx (Sphinx perelegans), Vashti sphinx (Sphinx vashti), Snowberry clearwing (Hemaris diffinis) and White-lined sphinx (Hyles lineata)) or anticipated in Grand County.

It is hoped that this checklist, with the thumbnails and notes, will help you quickly identify the caterpillars you have encountered or are likely to encounter.

A WO" after the species name indicates that I have no confirmed reports of this species in Grand County, but I (William Oehlke) expect that this moth is/might be present.

A USGS indicates the moth is reported on the USGS website and/or in Moths of Western North America, #2. Distribution of Sphingidae of Western North America, revised, an excellent little booklet available through Paul Opler.

Please help me develop this list with improved, documented accuracy by sending sightings (species, date, location), preferably with an image, via email to Bill Oehlke.

Sphinx chersis, Sphinx perelegans and Sphinx vashti are quite similar. Note the dark upper thorax with wide black bars extending to the abdomen on the image of Sphinx perelegans. In Sphinx chersis the entire thorax is uniform light blue-grey with very narrow dark lines.

Sphinx vashti lacks the checkered fringe on the hindwings.

Sphinginae subfamily Sphingini tribe: Ceratomia undulosa AM, the Waved Sphinx Note the pinkish-orange tail (can be bluish), spiracles outlined in red and the cream stripes on the head. The dramatic color change from the dorsal yellow-green to the lateral light greyish-blue is not always as intense as in this image. Manduca quinquemaculata USGS, the Five-spotted Hawkmoth The caterpillars are called Tomato Hornworms and each has a black horn at the end of the abdomen. Larvae feed on potato, tobacco, tomato, and other plants in the nightshade family (Solanaceae). There is also a very beautiful brown form. See bottom of page. Manduca rustica WO , the Rustic Sphinx Note the green horn, raised white bumps and strong dark lines anterior to the white ones. Manduca sexta WO, the Carolina Sphinx Tobacco Hornworms, equipped with a red-tipped horn at the end of the abdomen, are true gluttons and feed on tobacco and tomato, and occasionally potato and pepper crops and other plants in the nightshade family (Solanaceae). Sphinx asella WO, the Asella Sphinx This species is not recorded in Wayne County, and would be unlikely. It flies in pinyon-juniper woodland and similar arid situations in Colorado (specimen type locality) and Nevada, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. Sphinx chersis USGS, the Great Ash Sphinx The larvae are pale bluish green. The head has a pair of yellow lateral bands meeting at the apex. Larval hosts are ash, lilac, privet, cherry, and quaking aspen. Sphinx drupiferarum USGS, the Wild Cherry Sphinx Sphinx drupiferarum larvae hide in the day and feed primarily on cherry, plum, and apple at night. Larvae have been found on Amelanchier nantuckensis in Massachusetts and have been reared to pupation in Michigan on Prunus serotina from eggs readily oviposited by a female. Sphinx dollii WO, the Doll's Sphinx This species is not reported for Wayne County but may be present. It flies in arid brushlands and desert foothills. Sphinx perelegans USGS, the Elegant Sphinx; A unique feature of this larva is a shield on the first thoracic segment, which is of the same colour as the body and which forms a tight-fitting hood over the vertex of the head. This hides a pair of glossy black spots on top of the head, which are revealed if the animal is disturbed. Sphinx vashti USGS, the Snowberry Sphinx Larvae feed on the common snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus) and on coralberry (S. orbiculatus). Note the two golden lines of slightly raised bumps, one just behind the head, the other on the thorax. Smerinthini Tribe: Pachysphinx modesta WO, the Modest Sphinx or Poplar Sphinx Larvae feed on poplars and cottonwood. Pachysphinx occidentalis USGS, the Big Poplar Sphinx Larvae feed on cottonwood and poplar (Populus) and willow (Salix). Larvae are very chunky with little to distinguish them from Pachysphinx modesta. Paonias excaecata WO, the Blinded Sphinx Larvae accept willows, birches, and cherries. I have also found them in the wild on oak in eastern Canada. The skin of the mature larva has a very grainy appearance. Paonias myops WO, the Small-eyed Sphinx Wild cherry species are the favorites as larval foodplants, but eggs will also be deposited on birches and other forest trees. There are varying degrees in the amount of red markings along the sides. Smerinthus cerisyi USGS, Cerisy's Sphinx; Cerisyi larvae greatly resemble modesta larvae, both being pale green, with granular skin, pale lateral diagonal lines, faint red spiracular circles, and very pale longitudinal lines running from the head to a more pronounced anal diagonal line. Larvae have green heads bounded dorsally with a pale yellow inverted "V". Macroglossinae subfamily Dilophonotini Tribe: Hemaris thetis WO/EB, Larval host plants include Snowberry (Symphoricarpos), honeysuckle (Lonicera), Coralberry, viburnums, high bush cranberry and hawthorn (Crataegus). Horn is black with a slightly lighter base. This western species was formerly classified as H. diffinis or H. senta. Those species west of the Continental Divide are now classified as H. thetis. Hemaris senta WO, the Rocky Mountain Clearwing, There is probably a single brood of this montane species from May-August. The moth is seen along streamsides and in meadows in mountainous areas. sorry, no larval image available; possibly same as H. thetis Philampelini Tribe: Eumorpha achemon WO, the Achemon Sphinx Larvae feed upon Grape (Vitis), Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) and other vines and ivies (Ampelopsis). Larvae occur in both a light (green) form and a darker (tan/brown) form. Note six "segmented" oblique lines. Macroglossini Tribe: Euproserpinus wiesti WO, Wiest's Primrose Sphinx. Euproserpinus wiesti adults fly, during the day, over sand washes and prairie blow-outs as a single brood from May-June. Larvae feed on prairie primrose (Oenothera latifolia) in the evening primrose family (Onagraceae). Trying to rear in captivity has proven difficult. Larvae seem to need sunshine, heat and humidity. Hyles lineata USGS, the White-lined Sphinx Larvae are highly varied and feed on a great diversity of plants including willow weed (Epilobium), four o'clock (Mirabilis), apple (Malus), evening primrose (Oenothera), elm (Ulmus), grape (Vitis), tomato (Lycopersicon), purslane (Portulaca), and Fuschia. All larvae seem, however, to have the red/black swellings split by dorso-lateral lines.

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