''Daphnis hypothous'', the jade hawkmoth, is a species of
moth
Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...
in the family
Sphingidae
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 ar ...
described by
Pieter Cramer
Pieter Cramer (21 May 1721 (baptized) – 28 September 1776) was a wealthy Netherlands, Dutch merchant in linen and Spanish wool, remembered as an entomologist. Cramer was the director of the Zealand Society, a scientific society located in Flushin ...
in 1780. It is known from Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Myanmar, southern China, Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It is a rare vagrant to the
Western Palaearctic
The Western Palaearctic or Western Palearctic is part of the Palaearctic realm, one of the eight biogeographic realms dividing the Earth's surface. Because of its size, the Palaearctic is often divided for convenience into two, with Europe, North ...
realm
A realm is a community or territory over which a sovereign rules. The term is commonly used to describe a monarchical or dynastic state. A realm may also be a subdivision within an empire, if it has its own monarch, e.g. the German Empire.
Etymo ...
. During the last hundred years a number have been discovered within the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
and one was even found in
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
late in the 20th century but this was probably imported as a pupa with cargo.
Description
The
wingspan
The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...
is 86–120 mm. It is a very fast flyer and is attracted to both sweet-smelling flowers and light. It differs from ''
Daphnis nerii
''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''.
Distribution
''Daphnis nerii'' is a large hawk-moth found in wi ...
'' in having the head and collar uniformly dark purplish brown. Thorax and first two abdominal segments are dark green with a white fringe to the first segment. Other abdominal segments are dark olive green with the streaks and spots as in ''D. nerii''.
Wings are similar to ''D. nerii'' but very much darker on both dorsal and ventral side. A white spot is present at the apex of forewing and at the end of cell of forewing ventral side.
Larva is green with yellow dots at its sides. There is a dark dorsal line, a subdorsal purple-red band, edged with yellow on thoracic somites and a blue
ocellus
A simple eye or ocellus (sometimes called a pigment pit) is a form of eye or an optical arrangement which has a single lens without the sort of elaborate retina that occurs in most vertebrates. These eyes are called "simple" to distinguish the ...
on the third somite. Horn is purplish brown with white tubercles. Before changing to pupa, the larva becomes blotched with dark red.
Caterpillars can be found on ''
Breonia
''Breonia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Rubiaceae. It is Endemism, endemic to Madagascar. Most species are trees, rarely shrubs.
Species
*''Breonia boivinii''(species:Breonia boivinii, Wikispecies) George Darb ...
'', ''
Cinchona
''Cinchona'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae containing at least 23 species of trees and shrubs. All are native to the Tropical Andes, tropical Andean forests of western South America. A few species are ...
'', ''
Ixora
''Ixora'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It is the only genus in the tribe ''Ixoreae''. It consists of tropical evergreen trees and shrubs and holds around 544 species. Though native to the tropical and subtropical areas ...
'', ''
Pavetta'', ''
Uncaria
''Uncaria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Rubiaceae. It has about 40 species.''Uncaria'' At: World Checklist of Rubiaceae At: Kew Gardens Website. (see ''External links'' below). Their Range (biology), distribut ...
'', ''
Wendlandia'' and ''
Alstonia
''Alstonia'' is a widespread genus of evergreen trees and shrubs, of the family Apocynaceae. It was named by Robert Brown in 1811, after Charles Alston (1685–1760), professor of botany at Edinburgh from 1716 to 1760.
The type species ''Alston ...
'' plants.
Subspecies
*''Daphnis hypothous hypothous'' (Indonesia including the Andaman Islands and Seram)
*''Daphnis hypothous crameri''
Eitschberger & Melichar, 2010 (South and South-East Asia)
Gallery
Daphnis hypothous (Sphingidae).jpg,
Daphnis hypothous Laos 1.jpg, from Laos
Hawkmoth Caterpillar (Daphnis hypothous) (6856613431).jpg, Caterpillar
Daphnis hypothous Laos 3.jpg,
Daphnis hypothous crameri (Singapore) (R. Kendrick) L3 or L4.jpg, ssp. ''crameri''
Daphnis hypothous crameri (Indonesia, Sulawesi, Battang) (A. Sandi and G. Saunders) yellow and brown form.jpg, yellow-brown form
Related species
*''
Daphnis nerii
''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''.
Distribution
''Daphnis nerii'' is a large hawk-moth found in wi ...
'', white spot is absent at the apex of forewing.
References
External links
''Daphnis hypothous hypothous''Sphingidae of the Eastern Palaearctic
{{Taxonbar , from=Q138266
Daphnis (moth)
Moths described in 1780
Moths of Japan
Taxa named by Pieter Cramer
Moths of Taiwan
Moths of Malaysia
Moths of Indonesia
Moths of the Middle East