Poplar hawk-moth | |
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in Oxfordshire, England | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Sphingidae |
Genus: | Laothoe |
Species: | L. populi |
Binomial name | |
Laothoe populi | |
Synonyms | |
List
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Laothoe populi, the poplar hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East and is one of the most common members of the family in the region. [2] It is distinctive due to its habit of resting with its hindwings held further forward than (but still half hidden by) the forewings.
Adults may be seen from May to September, and do not feed, not having a functional proboscis, and can vary in colour from grey to yellow. The larva is green, feeds on poplar and some other tree species, and pupates below ground.
Laothoe populi is a large (wingspan 70–100 mm (2.8–3.9 in)), odd-looking species of moth, due to its habit of resting with its hindwings held further forward than (but still half hidden by) the forewings. The species lacks a frenulum joining the wings together, and is said to look like a cluster of dead leaves of the main host, poplar.
When disturbed, the moth will suddenly reveal a bright orange-red basal patch on the hindwing, possibly as a distraction or startle display. The wings are grey marked with darker grey fascia but with the greys occasionally replaced by buffish tones, a form more frequent among females than males. There is a white spot at the distal edge of the cell on the forewings.
Gynandromorphs, half female and half male, are common. [2]
Poplar hawk-moths have been known to produce a hybrid when mated with the eyed hawkmoth, Smerinthus ocellatus ; the hybrid has eyes on the hindwings. [3]
One or two broods are produced each year and adults can be seen from May to September. The adults do not feed. The species overwinters as a pupa.
The egg is large, spherical, pale green, and glossy, and is laid singly or in pairs on the underside of leaves of the host plant. [2] Females lay up to 200 eggs.
On first hatching the larva (or "hornworm") is pale green with small yellow tubercules and a cream-coloured tail horn. Later, it develops yellow diagonal stripes on its sides, and pink spiracles. Individuals feeding on willows may become quite heavily spotted with red. Others are more bluish white with cream stripes and tubercules. They are stout bodied, and grow to 65–85 mm (2.6–3.3 in). [2]
The larva pupates in an earthen cell 2–3 cm (0.79–1.18 in) below the surface, near its host plant. It has a short cremaster. [2]
Although they emerge late at night or early in the morning, the moth flies starting from the second night and is strongly attracted to light. Having no functional proboscis, it does not feed. [2]
Laothoe populi feeds mainly on poplar and aspen, but sometimes on willow, alder, apple, tomato, birch, elm, oak and ash. The food source used by the moth often depends on location. [2]
The hummingbird hawk-moth is a species of hawk moth found across temperate regions of Eurasia. The species is named for its similarity to hummingbirds, as they feed on the nectar of tube-shaped flowers using their long proboscis while hovering in the air; this resemblance is an example of convergent evolution.
The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as "hornworms"; it includes about 1,450 species. It is best represented in the tropics, but species are found in every region. They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their agile and sustained flying ability, similar enough to that of hummingbirds as to be reliably mistaken for them. Their narrow wings and streamlined abdomens are adaptations for rapid flight. The family was named by French zoologist Pierre André Latreille in 1802.
Mimas tiliae, the lime hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East, and has also been identified in Canada's east and western provinces and in northern Spain (Europe). The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Deilephila elpenor, the elephant hawk moth or large elephant hawk moth, is a moth in the family Sphingidae. Its common name is derived from the caterpillar's resemblance to an elephant's trunk. It is most common in central Europe and is distributed throughout the Palearctic region. It has also been introduced in British Columbia, Canada. Its distinct olive and pink colouring makes it one of the most recognisable moths in its range. However, it is quite easy to confuse the elephant hawk moth with the small elephant hawk moth, a closely related species that also shares the characteristic colours.
Agrius cingulata, the pink-spotted hawkmoth or sweetpotato hornworm, is a moth in the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775.
Agrius convolvuli, the convolvulus hawk-moth, is a large hawk-moth. It is common throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and New Zealand, partly as a migrant. In New Zealand, it is also known as the kumara moth, and in the Māori language as hīhue.
Psilogramma menephron, the privet hawk moth or large brown hawkmoth, is a member of the family Sphingidae. It was described by Pieter Cramer in 1780. It is usually found in Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, central and southern China, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. Psilogramma casuarinae from eastern Australia was long treated as a synonym but is now thought to be a distinct species. The introduced population on Hawaii was first thought to be P. menephron, but is Psilogramma increta.
Daphnis nerii, the oleander hawk-moth or army green moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Theretra oldenlandiae, the impatiens hawkmoth, taro hornworm or white-banded hunter hawkmoth, is a member of the family Sphingidae.
Acherontia atropos, the Africandeath's-head hawkmoth, is the most widely recognized of three species within the genus Acherontia. It is most commonly identified by the vaguely skull-shaped pattern adorning the thorax, the characteristic from which its common and scientific names are derived. The species was first given its scientific name by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Smerinthus ocellatus, the eyed hawk-moth, is a European moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Hyles gallii, the bedstraw hawk-moth or galium sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by S. A. von Rottemburg in 1775.
Acherontia lachesis, the greater death's head hawkmoth or bee robber, is a large sphingid moth found in India, Sri Lanka and much of the Oriental region. It is one of the three species of death's-head hawkmoth genus, Acherontia. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1798. It is nocturnal and very fond of honey; they can mimic the scent of honey bees so that they can enter a hive unharmed to get honey. Their tongue, which is stout and very strong, enables them to pierce the wax cells and suck the honey out. This species occurs throughout almost the entire Oriental region, from India, Pakistan and Nepal to the Philippines, and from southern Japan and the southern Russian Far East to Indonesia, where it attacks colonies of several different honey bee species. It has recently become established on the Hawaiian Islands.
Macroglossum sitiene, the crisp-banded hummingbird hawkmoth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae described by Francis Walker in 1856.
Clanidopsis is a genus of moths in the family Sphingidae, containing only one species Clanidopsis exusta, the white-streaked hawkmoth. The genus was erected by Walter Rothschild and Karl Jordan in 1903 and the species was first described by Arthur Gardiner Butler in 1875.
Pergesa is a monotypic moth genus in the family Sphingidae first described by Francis Walker in 1856. Its only species, Pergesa acteus, the green pergesa hawkmoth, was described by Pieter Cramer in 1779.
Cechenena lineosa, the striped green hawkmoth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is known from northern India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, southern China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.
Rhodoprasina callantha, the small olive hawkmoth, is a species of moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found from north-eastern India across south-western China and northern Thailand to northern Vietnam.
Laothoe populeti is a species of moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found from eastern Turkey and Armenia, through north-eastern Iraq, the Iranian plateau and the central Asian republics of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and north-western China.
Laothoe austanti, the Maghreb poplar hawkmoth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Otto Staudinger in 1877. It is known from the Atlas Mountains and coastal plains of Morocco, northern Algeria and Tunisia and the neighbouring desert areas. The habitat consists of poplar- and willow-lined streams and rivers.