Caterpillars of the
World - Britain
Privet Hawk moth
Sphinx ligustri
LINNAEUS, 1758
Family - SPHINGIDAE
subfamily -
SPHINGINAE
Tribe -
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult
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Sphinx ligustri, Hampshire,
England |
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Introduction
The family Sphingidae comprises 200
genera and about 1200 known species worldwide of which 16 species
have been recorded in the British Isles, and 125 in North America.
They are known as Hawk moths due to
their hovering hawk-like flight. In the USA they are known by the
alternative name Sphinx moths - this refers to the behaviour of
the caterpillars which often rest with their heads raised in a
sphinx-like posture.
Habitats
Sphinx ligustri
is distributed throughout temperate regions of Europe and Asia as
far east as Japan. It breeds in open-scrub and
woodland-edge habitats and is most abundant on
calcareous ( chalk / limestone ) hills where wild privet grows in
profusion. other habitats include alpine valleys, and suburban
zones where privet is grown for hedging.
Lifecycle
Caterpillars of species in the
subfamilies Sphinginae and Smerinthinae are usually marked with a
series of diagonal stripes on the abdominal segments, and have a
curved horn at the tail end. This horn is quite soft to touch, and
despite popular myth does not sting.
In some tropical species the horn is
much longer and thinner, and can be used as a whip to discourage
attack by parasitoid wasps and flies. The function of the shorter
horn found in most temperate zone species is unknown.
This species feeds as a caterpillar
on privet
Ligustrum vulgare,
ash Fraxinus
excelsior,
Virburnum
sp, Spiraea
sp, and occasionally on Holly
Ilex aquifolium
and other plants.
The caterpillar is attacked by many species of parasitoid wasps including
Amblyjoppa fuscipennis, Apechthis compunctor, Apechthis
rufata,
Callajoppa cirrogaster, Callajoppa exaltatoria, Goedartia alboguttata, Ichneumon insidiosus, Pimpla turionellae, Protichneumon
fusorius,
Protichneumon pisorius, Therion circumflexum;
and by parasitoid flies including
Compsilura concinnata, Frontina laeta, Huebneria affinis, Masicera sphingivora, Nilea hortulana, Phryxe
nemea, Phryxe erythrostoma
and Winthemia cruentata.
Pupation takes place on the
surface of the ground amongst mosses and leaf litter, or in loose
soil just below the surface of the ground. The pupae are dark
reddish-brown in colour, and have the proboscis raised proud of the
surface like a jug handle.
Adult
The forewings of this large (
90-120mm wingspan ) species are patterned in shades of brown, grey
and blackish, giving the moth a strong resemblance to a broken
woody stick. This provides it with excellent camouflage when it is
at rest on fence posts or tree trunks. The body is hidden beneath
the wings at these times, but if disturbed the moth spreads the
wings to reveal the abdomen, which is banded in pink and black.
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