Aellopos tantalus

Last updated

Tantalus sphinx
Aellopos tantalus MHNT CUT 2010 0 273 San Blas, Nayarit, Mexico male dorsal.jpg
Male dorsal
Aellopos tantalus MHNT CUT 2010 0 273 San Blas, Nayarit, Mexico male ventral.jpg
Male venral
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Sphingidae
Genus: Aellopos
Species:
A. tantalus
Binomial name
Aellopos tantalus
Synonyms
  • Sphinx tantalusLinnaeus, 1758
  • Sphinx ixionLinnaeus, 1758
  • Macroglossa sisyphusBurmeister, 1855
  • Sphinx terpunctataGoeze, 1780
  • Sphinx tantalus zonataDrury, 1773
Cramer&Stoll-uitlandsche kapellen vol. 1- plate 068.jpg

Aellopos tantalus, known as the Tantalus sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found in Florida, the Antilles, from Mexico to Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Suriname, and in the Amazon basin.

Contents

The wingspan is 45–57 millimetres (1.8–2.2 in). Adults are on wing year-round. The adults feed on nectar of various flowers, including Eugenia axillaris , Draceana fragrans and Ernodea littoralis .

The larvae feed on Rubiaceae species, including Casasia clusiifolia and Randia aculeata . Pupation takes place in loose cocoons in shallow underground chambers or in leaf litter. [2]

Subspecies

References

  1. "CATE Creating a Taxonomic eScience - Sphingidae". Cate-sphingidae.org. Archived from the original on 2012-11-08. Retrieved 2011-10-19.
  2. "Silkmoths". Silkmoths.bizland.com. Archived from the original on 2011-11-12. Retrieved 2011-10-19.