Sphinx canadensis

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Canadian sphinx
Sphinx canadensis - Canadian Sphinx Moth.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Sphingidae
Genus: Sphinx
Species:
S. canadensis
Binomial name
Sphinx canadensis
(Boisduval, 1875) [1]
Synonyms
  • Sphinx plotaStrecker, 1875 [2]

Sphinx canadensis, the Canadian sphinx, is a member of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1875.

Contents

Distribution

That is found the northeastern United States and as north as Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.


Description

The adult's wingspan is between 70 and 85 mm. [3] It is often confused with the hermit sphinx ( Sphinx eremitus ) throughout their overlaying areas, but unlike S. eremitus it has no white spot. The forewing of this species is gray brown with black streaks along the veins, interrupted by white lines along the outer margin. The hindwing is patterned with black and white bands. [4]

Biology

It was previously thought that the larvae of this species fed on both white ash ( Fraxinus americana ) and blueberry ( Vaccinium ), but recent observations suggest that the only larval host plant is black ash ( Fraxinus nigra ) which grows at the edges of swamps. Phlox ( Phlox species) and bouncing bet ( Saponaria officinalis ) are the preferred nectar sources. Adults fly much later in the year than other sphinx moth species; most adults are collected in very late July or early August. The black patches on the sides of the larvae are thought to mimic the curled leaves of black ash.

Related Research Articles

<i>Ceratomia catalpae</i> Species of moth

Ceratomia catalpae, the catalpa sphinx, is a hawk moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1875. Other common names are the Catawba worm, or Catalpa sphinx.

<i>Ceratomia amyntor</i> Species of moth

Ceratomia amyntor, the elm sphinx or four-horned sphinx, is a North American moth in the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Carl Geyer in 1835. It has a wingspan of 3+14-4+12 inches. As the name suggests, the larvae (caterpillars) feed on elm trees (Ulmus), but they can also be found feeding on birch (Betula), basswood (Tilia), and cherry (Prunus). When the caterpillars are ready, they crawl to the bottom of the host tree, where they crawl underneath the soil and pupate and may overwinter underground if late enough into the year. Vegetable growers should be aware of this larvae due to its insatiable appetite. One of these larvae are capable in devouring huge amounts of plant's foliage and even succulent stems.

<i>Ceratomia hageni</i> Species of moth

Ceratomia hageni, the Osage orange sphinx or Hagen's sphinx, is a hawk moth. The species was first described by Augustus Radcliffe Grote in 1874.

<i>Ceratomia undulosa</i> Species of moth

Ceratomia undulosa, the waved sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Francis Walker in 1856. Also known as the "Scorpion Moth".

<i>Paratrea</i> Genus of moths

Paratrea is a monotypic moth genus in the family Sphingidae erected by Augustus Radcliffe Grote in 1903. Its single species, Paratrea plebeja, the plebeian sphinx moth, was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1777. It is found in the eastern part of the United States as far west as Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and eastern Texas.

<i>Sphinx chersis</i> Species of moth

Sphinx chersis, the great ash sphinx or northern ash sphinx, is a moth that belongs to the family Sphingidae.

<i>Lintneria eremitus</i> Species of moth

Lintneria eremitus, the hermit sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Jacob Hübner in 1823. It is found in the temperate areas of the eastern United States, north into southern Canada over the Great Plains. It prefers gardens and yards, but is common wherever the nectar and larval host plants are found. This moth is easily confused with the Canadian sphinx but these two moths do not typically co-occur.

<i>Smerinthus saliceti</i> Species of moth

Smerinthus saliceti, the Salicet sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1875.

<i>Sphinx franckii</i> Species of moth

Sphinx franckii, or Franck's sphinx moth is a moth in the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Berthold Neumoegen in 1893. It is known from lowland deciduous woodland in the eastern United States but also suburban areas where lilacs are planted, ranging from New York to northern Florida east to Missouri and Louisiana.

<i>Isognathus rimosa</i> Species of moth

Isognathus rimosa, the rimosus sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Augustus Radcliffe Grote in 1865.

<i>Enyo lugubris</i> Species of moth

Enyo lugubris, the mournful sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found from Argentina and Paraguay to Uruguay, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and the West Indies through Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama to Mexico and the United States, where it has been recorded from Arizona east to Florida and north to South Carolina. Strays have been recorded from Arkansas, north to Illinois, Michigan and New York.

<i>Eumorpha achemon</i> Species of moth

Eumorpha achemon, the Achemon sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Dru Drury in 1773.

<i>Hemaris thysbe</i> Species of moth

Hemaris thysbe, the hummingbird clearwing, is a moth of the family Sphingidae (hawkmoths). Coloration varies between individuals, but typically the moth is olive green and burgundy on its back, and white or yellow and burgundy on the underside. Its wings are transparent with a reddish-brown border. It has light-colored legs, which combined with the lack of striping on the underside is diagnostic. Beating its wings rapidly, H. thysbe hovers to collect nectar from a variety of flowers. The combination of its appearance and its behavior commonly leads to it being confused with a hummingbird or bumblebee.

<i>Proserpinus clarkiae</i> Species of moth

Proserpinus clarkiae, or Clark's sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1852. It is known from British Columbia and Washington south through California to Baja California, east to Idaho, Wyoming and Utah. The habitat consists of oak woodland and pine-oak woodland in foothills.

<i>Amphion floridensis</i> Species of moth

Amphion floridensis, the Nessus sphinx, is a day-flying moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was described by Pieter Cramer in 1777, and renamed in 1920. It is the only member of the genus Amphion erected by Jacob Hübner in 1819. It lives throughout the eastern United States and Canada and occasionally south into Mexico, and is one of the more commonly encountered day-flying moths in the region, easily recognized by the two bright-yellow bands across the abdomen.

<i>Proserpinus lucidus</i> Species of moth

Proserpinus lucidus, the Pacific green sphinx or bear sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1852.

<i>Sphinx kalmiae</i> Species of moth

Sphinx kalmiae, the laurel sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae.

<i>Sphinx gordius</i> Species of moth

Sphinx gordius, the apple sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Pieter Cramer in 1780.

<i>Sphinx luscitiosa</i> Species of moth

Sphinx luscitiosa, or Clemens' hawkmoth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by James Brackenridge Clemens in 1859. It is found in North America from Nova Scotia south to New Jersey, west through Michigan, Wisconsin and the northern plains to Alberta, Saskatchewan and Montana and south to Utah. It has been taken as far north as Yukon.

<i>Paonias astylus</i> Species of moth

Paonias astylus, the huckleberry sphinx, is a moth in the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Dru Drury in 1773.

References

  1. "Sphinx canadensis Boisduval 1875 - EOL" . Retrieved 2009-10-23.
  2. "CATE Creating a Taxonomic eScience - Sphingidae". Cate-sphingidae.org. Retrieved 2011-11-01.[ permanent dead link ]
  3. Cotinis (July 24, 2018). "Species Sphinx canadensis - Canadian Sphinx - Hodges#7807". BugGuide. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
  4. Lotts, Kelly & Naberhaus, Thomas (2017). "Canadian sphinx Sphinx canadensis Boisduval, 1875". Butterflies and Moths of North America. Retrieved January 6, 2019.