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Updated as per James P. Tuttle's The Hawk Moths of North America, September 20, 2008
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Spokane County, Washington
Sphingidae Larvae
Sphinx drupiferarum Spokane County, Washington,
early September, courtesy of Cindy, Mark, Evan and Graham Brower.
This page is inspired by and dedicated to Cindy, Mark, Evan and Graham Brower who found the
S. drupiferarum larva, top of page, were successful in getting it to pupate, and sent along the pupal images at page bottom.
They write, "We live in Spokane, WA (on the border with Idaho) and two weeks ago we found a Wild Cherry Sphinx Caterpillar in our yard.
We’ve never seen one like it in this area and were wondering if it’s native to this area. Also, we followed your instructions and placed wet
paper towels in its habitat and, after thinking he was dead for a few days, he pupated which was wonderful to see! Now we are wondering how long
til eclosion and is there anything we should do to prepare for this?
"Thank you for setting up your very informative website – yours is the only one I could find that correctly identified our Wild Cherry Sphinx! It’s been fascinating!
"P.S. We named him Nigel."
I replied, "Congratulations.
"The moth wil not eclose until spring. To prevent an indoor mid winter eclosion due to warm house temps, you should put the pupa, wrapped, like a cigar,
in a single piece of toilet tissue. Store it in sandwich sized or smaller ziploc/gladware/tupperware plastic container lid on tight,
no airholes in fridge crisper. Take it out in early May.
Please read http://www3.islandtelecom.com/~oehlkew/zpupae.htm
and
http://www.silkmoths.bizland.com/emerge.htm.
"Hard to tell for sure whether you have Sphinx drupiferarum or Sphinx perelegans. The larvae are very similar. Can you send another
image (first image sent did not show horn) of Nigel showing the anal horn or can you remember if it was blue (perelegans) or reddish (drupiferarum)?
"I would like permission to use image, with credit to you, on webpage I will create for Spokane County Sphingidae larvae."
"Thank you so much for your prompt and helpful response! We will follow your instructions. Here is another picture of Nigel where you can see his red
horn.
"Yes, you have our permission to use our images on your webpage – our boys, 5 & 7 years old, are very excited about this, as are we."
************
For care of "found larvae/caterpillars" visit Manduca sexta larva, Travis County, central Texas,
August 21, 2008, Trina Woodall.
Only seventeen Sphingidae species are listed for Washington on the U.S.G.S.
website. Not all of the species are reported or anticipated in
Spokane County (Eight are reported on U.S.G.S. as of September 20, 2008).
It is hoped that this checklist, with the thumbnails
and notes, will help you quickly identify the larvae you are likely to
encounter.
A "WO" after the species name indicates that
I have no confirmed reports of this species in your county, but I
(William Oehlke) expect that this moth with its larvae are present or
might be present. I have included many species not on the
USGS list for Washington; I believe they are or might be present
A "USGS" indicates the
moth is reported in Lepidoptera of North America,
#1. Distribution of Silkmoths (Saturniidae) and Hawkmoths (Sphingidae)
of Eastern North America,
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
electronic image, via email to
Bill Oehlke.
Sphinginae subfamily
Sphingini tribe:
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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).
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Sphinx chersis
WO, the Northern Ash Sphinx or Great Ash
Sphinx:
The larvae are pale bluish green. The head has a pair of yellow
lateral bands meeting at the apex. The oblique, lateral stripes are
pale and bordered anteriorly with a darker green.
Larval hosts are ash, lilac, privet, cherry, and quaking aspen. questionable, probably not
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Sphinx drupiferarum
USGS/Brower family, the
Wild Cherry Sphinx
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. Note purple oblique lines.
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Sphinx drupiferarum larva, early September, Spokane, Brower family
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Sphinx perelegans
USGS, the
Elegant Sphinx:
The basic body colour can be either glaucous or apple-green, without the earlier body tubercles. The oblique side stripes are white,
edged with purple.
The horn is sky blue. The spiracles are pale orange and the anal flap is edged with yellow.
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 | 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.
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Smerinthini Tribe:
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Pachysphinx modesta
WO,
the Modest Sphinx or Poplar Sphinx
Larvae feed on poplars and cottonwood.
The anal horn is greatly reduced in the final instar.
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Larvae feed on cottonwood and poplar (Populus) and willow
(Salix).
Larvae are very chunky with little to distinguish them
from Pachysphinx modesta.
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Larvae accept willows, birches, and cherries.
I have also found them in the wild on oak in eastern Canada.
Skin is quite granulous.
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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.
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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".
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Macroglossinae subfamily
Dilophonotini tribe:
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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.
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Macroglossini tribe:
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Arctonotus lucidus
WO, the Pacific Green Sphinx or Bear Sphinx
Larvae feed on evening primrose (Oenothera dentata var. campestris) and
clarkias. David Wikle fed them on both Mexican evening primrose, Oenothera berlandieri and evening primrose, Oenothera biennis.
Earlier instars are green. Eye at dorsal posterior appears in fifth instar.
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Hyles gallii
USGS, the Bedstraw Hawk Moth
or Gallium Sphinx
This species is not reported in Chippewa, but it has been recorded in
eastern Wisconsin counties. I suspect it is present.
Larvae come in black and in brown forms and often feed on
Epilobium (fireweed).
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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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Larvae feed on elegant fairyfan (Clarkia unguiculata) in the evening primrose family (Onagraceae).
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Larvae feed on willow weed (Epilobium) and possibly thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus).
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Sphinx drupiferarum fresh pupa, Spokane County, Washington,
early September, courtesy of Cindy, Mark, Evan and Graham Brower.
Sphinx drupiferarum hardened pupa, Spokane County, Washington,
early September, courtesy of Cindy, Mark, Evan and Graham Brower.
I am not sure that the tongue sheathe is properly formed on this pupa. I do not think it will effect the
subsequent development and emergence of the moth.
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This page is brought to you by
Bill Oehlke and the
WLSS. Pages are on space rented from Bizland. If you would like
to become a "Patron of the Sphingidae Site", contact Bill.
Please send sightings/images to Bill. I will do my best to respond to
requests for identification help.