Xylophanes dolius
Encyclopedia
Xylophanes dolius is a moth
of the Sphingidae
family. It is known from Ecuador
and Bolivia
.
The wingspan
is about 70 mm for males. Females are larger. It is similar to Xylophanes hydrata
in forewing shape but the ground colour is brown and there are differences in pattern. The abdomen is without basal lateral patches. The lateral stripes are pale golden yellow and the dorsal median line is narrow and flanked by two diffuse lines weakly emphasized by spots on the posterior margins of the tergites. The base of the forewing upperside is pale grey, although the middle third is brown, with a conspicuous small discal spot, immediately beyond which are two or three short, darker brown longitudinal dashes. The distal third is yellowish grey. The basal half of the forewing underside is brown and the distal part is yellow, irrorated with brown. The apex has a conspicuous brown patch. There is also a brown patch on the tornus. The marginal area between these two patches is paler and yellow suffused with orange. The hindwing upperside is dark brown. The pale median band is poorly developed andoften suffused with black over the distal half.
The larvae probably feed on Rubiaceae
and Malvaceae
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 is known from Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
and Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
.
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 about 70 mm for males. Females are larger. It is similar to Xylophanes hydrata
Xylophanes hydrata
Xylophanes hydrata is a moth of the Sphingidae family. It is found from Brazil west to Bolivia and Peru.It is similar to Xylophanes elara but slightly larger and the postmedian lines and vein spots on the submarginal line on the forewing upperside are stronger. The postmedian line on the base of...
in forewing shape but the ground colour is brown and there are differences in pattern. The abdomen is without basal lateral patches. The lateral stripes are pale golden yellow and the dorsal median line is narrow and flanked by two diffuse lines weakly emphasized by spots on the posterior margins of the tergites. The base of the forewing upperside is pale grey, although the middle third is brown, with a conspicuous small discal spot, immediately beyond which are two or three short, darker brown longitudinal dashes. The distal third is yellowish grey. The basal half of the forewing underside is brown and the distal part is yellow, irrorated with brown. The apex has a conspicuous brown patch. There is also a brown patch on the tornus. The marginal area between these two patches is paler and yellow suffused with orange. The hindwing upperside is dark brown. The pale median band is poorly developed andoften suffused with black over the distal half.
The larvae probably feed on Rubiaceae
Rubiaceae
The Rubiaceae is a family of flowering plants, variously called the coffee family, madder family, or bedstraw family. The group contains many commonly known plants, including the economically important coffee , quinine , and gambier , and the horticulturally valuable madder , west indian jasmine ,...
and Malvaceae
Malvaceae
Malvaceae, or the mallow family, is a family of flowering plants containing over 200 genera with close to 2,300 species. Judd & al. Well known members of this family include okra, jute and cacao...
species.