What's that bug?

August 30, 2011 2:03 PM

What's that bug (moth)?

-Found this afternoon in San Diego.
-About the same size as a Hummingbird.
-Looks like a Blackburn's Sphinx Moth, which is apparently native to Hawaii.

What did I actually find? A local Hornworm?

posted by Barmecide to Science & Nature (5 answers total)

Yeah that looks like a Five-Spotted Hawkmoth. Especially from this picture.
posted by royalsong at 2:07 PM on August 30, 2011

Seconding five-spotted hawkmoth (tomato hornworm, Manduca quinquemaculata). Your "native to Hawaii" article notes that the Blackburn's sphinx moth and five-spotted hawkmoth are closely related and physically similar.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:14 PM on August 30, 2011

Actually.. nevermind. I think he's a Carolina Sphinx moth instead. (mostly because I count 6 orange spots, when the five-spotted one is suppose to have.. well five.)

The wikipedia for the five-spotted one says it's very easy to confuse these two.

(also, when you have entomophobia, these guys are especially creepy. My desire to answer your question outweighs my desire to flee?)
posted by royalsong at 2:15 PM on August 30, 2011

Heh, and I even counted! I must be more tired than I thought.

Yeah, too many spots for the tomato hornworm.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 2:42 PM on August 30, 2011

Ahah!

Thank you both. Perhaps I should have actually read ALL of the article I linked!
posted by Barmecide at 2:43 PM on August 30, 2011