''Eumorpha satellitia'', the satellite sphinx, is a

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 ...

of 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 ...

. The family was first described by

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

in 1771. It lives from

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and northern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

north through

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, and the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

to south

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and southern

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. 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 114–134 mm. Adults are on wing from April to August and then again in October. They feed on the nectar of various flowers, including '' Petunia hybrida'', ''

Saponaria officinalis ''Saponaria officinalis'' is a common perennial plant from the family Caryophyllaceae. This plant has many common names, including common soapwort, bouncing-bet, crow soap, wild sweet William, and soapweed. There are about 20 species of soapwor ...

'' and '' Lychnis alba''. The larvae feed on '' Cissus pseudosicyoides'' and '' Cissus rhombifolia''. Pupation takes place underground.

Subspecies

*''Eumorpha satellitia satellitia'' (Jamaica and from Mexico, Belize, Guatemala to Ecuador and further south into Bolivia, Brazil and Uruguay) *''Eumorpha satellitia excessus'' (Gehlen, 1926) (Brazil) *''Eumorpha satellitia licaon'' (Cramer, 1775) (extreme southern Texas, Mexico, Nicaragua and Costa Rica south to Brazil to Bolivia and Paraguay) *''Eumorpha satellitia posticatus'' (Grote, 1865) (Cuba and the Bahamas)

Gallery

Eumorpha satellitia excessus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 Rio Verde de Mato Grosso dorsal.jpg, ''E. s. excessus'' - dorsal view Eumorpha satellitia excessus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 Rio Verde de Mato Grosso ventral.jpg, ''E. s. excessus'' - ventral view Eumorpha satellitia licaon MHNT CUT 2010 0 300 San Diego Mexico Male dorsal.jpg, ''E. s. licaon'' Male - dorsal view Eumorpha satellitia licaon MHNT CUT 2010 0 300 San Diego Mexico Male ventral.jpg, ''E. s. licaon'' Male - ventral view Eumorpha satellitia licaon MHNT CUT 2010 0 300 Guatopo national park venezuela Female dorsal.jpg, ''E. s. licaon'' female - dorsal view Eumorpha satellitia licaon MHNT CUT 2010 0 300 Guatopo national park venezuela Female ventral.jpg, ''E. s. licaon'' female - ventral view Eumorpha satellitia posticatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 Guantánamo female dorsal.jpg, Female ''E. s. posticatus'' - Female dorsal view Eumorpha satellitia posticatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 Guantánamo female ventral.jpg, Female ''E. s. posticatus'' - Female ventral view Eumorpha satellitia posticatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 La Habana male dorsal.jpg, Male ''E. s. posticatus'' - Male dorsal view Eumorpha satellitia posticatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 8 La Habana male ventral.jpg, Male ''E. s. posticatus'' - Male ventral view

References

External links

* Eumorpha Moths described in 1771 Sphingidae of South America Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Moths of Central America Moths of the Caribbean {{Philampelini-stub