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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Butterflies and Moths (Lepidoptera) » Silkworm, Sphinx, and Royal Moths (Bombycoidea) » Sphinx Moths (Sphingidae) » Sphinginae » Sphingini » Manduca » Rustic Sphinx - Hodges#7778 (Manduca rustica)

Species Manduca rustica - Rustic Sphinx - Hodges#7778

Classification · Hodges Number · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Size · Identification · Range · Season · Food · Life Cycle · See Also · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

sphinx moth caterpillar ID (on white fringetree) - Manduca rustica

Show images of: caterpillars · adults · both

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Superfamily Bombycoidea (Silkworm, Sphinx, and Royal Moths)

Family Sphingidae (Sphinx Moths)

Subfamily Sphinginae

Tribe Sphingini

Genus Manduca

Species rustica (Rustic Sphinx - Hodges#7778)

Hodges Number

7778

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Manduca rustica (Fabricius, 1775)

Phylogenetic sequence # 226475

Size

Wingspan: 87 - 150 mm

Identification

Larval ID: note the extremely granulated horn (1)

Range

Mostly e. US to AZ, West Indies, and Mexico to Argentina. - Map (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (2)

Season

Adults are most common from April to November.

Heppner (2003) recorded adults in Florida the month of February, and from May to November. (2)

Food

Many larval hosts in several plants families:

Asteraceae - common sunflower (Helianthus annuus)

Bignoniaceae - bignonia (Bignonia), desert willow (Chilopsis linearis), Cape honeysuckle (Tecoma capensis)

Boraginaceae - knockaway (Ethretia anacua), heliotrope (Heliotropium) Bahama Strongbark (Bourreria succulenta)

Lamiaceae - forked bluecurls (Trichostema dichotomum)

Lythraceae - crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia indica)

Oleaceae - jasmine (Jasminum), ash (Fraxinus), white fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus), privet (Ligustrum), common lilac (Syringa vulgaris)

Verbenaceae - American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana), lantana (Lantana camara), bushy lippie (Lippia alba)

Life Cycle

Life cycle images:

larva; larva burrowing into soil; larva ready to pupate; pupa; adult

See Also

Pawpaw Sphinx--Dolba hyloeus

Print References

Covell Jr, C.V. 1984. A Field Guide to the Moths of Eastern North America. Houghton Mifflin Company. p.32, pl.3.8 (9)

Hodges, R.W., 1971. The Moths of America North of Mexico, Fascicle 21: 33; pl. 1.5. (10)

Powell, J.A. & P.A. Opler 2009. Moths of Western North America. University of California. p.244, pl.40.9m (11)

Tuttle, J.P., 2007. Hawk Moths of North America, 51; pl. 8.7. (12)

Wagner, D.L., 2005. Caterpillars of Eastern North America, p. 249. (1)

Internet References

Moth Photographers Group - MPG

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) (13)

Dallas Butterflies

Moths of North Carolina

Bill Oehlke's website

Moths of North Dakota

iNaturalist

Works Cited

1.	Caterpillars of Eastern North America David L. Wagner. 2005. Princeton University Press.

2.	Arthropods of Florida and Neighboring Land Areas: Lepidoptera of Florida J.B. Heppner. 2003. Florida Department of Agriculture 17(1): 1-670.

3.	South Carolina Moth Species

4.	Moths of Brackenridge Field Laboratory University of Texas at Austin

5.	Oklahoma moth species list by county (PDF)

6.	Moths of Dallas County, Texas

7.	Moths of Southeast Arizona

8.	Essig Museum of Entomology, California Moth Species List

9.	Peterson Field Guides: Eastern Moths Charles V. Covell. 1984. Houghton Mifflin Company.

10.	The Moths of America North of Mexico Fascicle 21 Sphingidae Ronald W. Hodges. 1971. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation.

11.	Moths of Western North America Powell and Opler. 2009. UC Press.

12.	The Hawk Moths of North America, A Natural History Study of the Sphingidae of the United States and Canada. James P Tuttle. 2007. The Wedge Entomological Research Foundation Inc.

13.	BOLD: The Barcode of Life Data Systems

Contributed by Cotinis on 12 May, 2004 - 5:34pm
Additional contributions by Hannah Nendick-Mason, Mike Quinn, Maury Heiman, Robert Lord Zimlich, marcie oconnor, Randy Hardy
Last updated 2 May, 2024 - 8:14am

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