Pachysphinx occidentalis
Encyclopedia
The Big Poplar Sphinx is a moth
of the Sphingidae
family. It lives throughout Canada
and the United States
. The habitat consists of riparian areas and suburbs.
The wingspan
is 130-150 mm. There are two color forms, a pale form with yellow brown forewings, which are dark gray in the dark form. The lines and bands are well-defined. The upperside of the hindwing has a crimson patch covering varying amounts of the wing, and two dark lines which do not form a distinct triangle.
There are two generations per year in southern Arizona with adults on wing from May to September. Farther north, there is one generation per year with adults on wing from June to August.
The larvae feed on cottonwood Populus and Salix species.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Sphingidae
Sphingidae
Sphingidae is a family of moths , commonly known as hawk moths, sphinx moths and hornworms, that includes about 1,200 species . It is best represented in the tropics but there are species in every region . They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their rapid,...
family. It lives throughout Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The habitat consists of riparian areas and suburbs.
The wingspan
Wingspan
The wingspan of an airplane or a bird, is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777 has a wingspan of about ; and a Wandering Albatross caught in 1965 had a wingspan of , the official record for a living bird.The term wingspan, more technically extent, is...
is 130-150 mm. There are two color forms, a pale form with yellow brown forewings, which are dark gray in the dark form. The lines and bands are well-defined. The upperside of the hindwing has a crimson patch covering varying amounts of the wing, and two dark lines which do not form a distinct triangle.
There are two generations per year in southern Arizona with adults on wing from May to September. Farther north, there is one generation per year with adults on wing from June to August.
The larvae feed on cottonwood Populus and Salix species.
Subspecies
- Pachysphinx occidentalis occidentalis (from Alberta and North Dakota west to eastern Washington, south to Texas, Arizona, southern California, and Baja California Norte)
- Pachysphinx occidentalis regalis Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 (Mexico)
External links
- Big Poplar Sphinx Butterflies and Moths of North America
- Pachysphinx occidentalis occidentalis Sphingidae of the Americas