Sunday, August 30, 2009

Caterpillar: Rustic Sphinx Moth (Manduca rustica)

This Rustic Sphinx moth caterpillar visited the butterfly bush a couple of weeks ago. Just saw it the one afternoon. Couldn’t find it or a chrysalis the next day. It's a magnificent caterpillar.




Identification resource:
- Bug Guide: Rustic Sphinx Moth (Manduca rustica) [Moth] [Caterpillar]
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2 comments:

  1. RobertaSeptember 20, 2011 at 8:59 PM

    Lovely capture.

    BTW, these are moths that pupate in the soil after a short "wandering phase." That ,ight be why it disappeared.

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  2. JSKSeptember 21, 2011 at 8:22 PM

    Thanks Roberta. I'm just getting used to moths pupating in the soil. It probably did head on down. This area had a lot of vegetation so it would have been hard to find.

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